To the editor:
Road accidents and complaints about road safety are at an all time high. There are many potential solutions, but we want to focus on adding street lights.
In 2021, 390 car-related deaths were recorded in Massachusetts, according to Spada Law Group. This has marked a record high since 2012, which recorded a total of 364 deaths. Unfortunately, many of these accidents are caused by the lack of streetlights. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, between 2005–2007, poor road design and trouble seeing signs and signals contributed 1,000 accidents respectively to the amount of accidents in the US.
We believe with better lighting these accidents could have been completely averted.
This is especially important for Wellesley students who walk. While now in April there is more light, during much of the late fall and winter, it is still dark out by the time school starts in the morning. This is also a problem for after school or evening events, when students need to get home late. Fortunately, street lights have been proven to make an area feel safer overall and reduce most forms of crime: The Newark Public Safety Collaborative reported that better street lighting can reduce crimes such as sexual assault, murder, and robbery by as much as 36%.
The other side of the argument suggests that pedestrians can simply wear reflective clothing at night to become more visible. However, reflective gear is often ineffective. The Jividen Law Offices states that even when cyclists or pedestrians wear these types of clothing, they can be hard to see without adequate lighting, as they have such a small profile. Additionally, many people do not use high-visibility wear—and teenagers often refuse to do so.
If street lights were added, there would be far fewer worries for both pedestrians and drivers. Traffic would likely run more smoothly and parents would be able to worry less about their children who walk or bike in the dark.
Wellesley Municipal Light Plant (WMLP) is in charge of installing streetlights, once the Wellesley Police Department has determined that lighting will improve safety in an area.
We think there should be more lights around WMS, and when we surveyed Wellesley residents, we got several other recommended locations. If you know of an intersection or area that you think needs another streetlight, let the WMLP know and help improve safety for everyone.
Luna Lu
Wellesley Middle School, 8th grader
Jacey Zhang
Wellesley Middle School, 8th grader
