“Viewpoints” is a place on Chapelboro where local people are encouraged to share their unique perspectives on issues affecting our community. If you’d like to contribute a column on an issue you’re concerned about, interesting happenings around town, reflections on local life — or anything else — send a submission to viewpoints@wchl.com.
Friends of OCS? Not So Much
A perspective from Nicholas Stover
Actions speak louder than words. That’s one of the most important sayings I live by. I’ve been paid lip service about so many things throughout my life only to be met with actions that run diametrically opposed to the words that come from the mouths of others. Very few other things have proven so consistent, and nowhere is this more evident than with the way traffic operates in the Triangle. Coming from a small town, it should be no surprise to me to see the changes in behavior. In all honesty, I was really surprised, and not in a positive way. The level for which self-serving attitudes prevails is breathtaking. In the roughly two years I’ve been in the Triangle, I’ve lost count of the number of stop signs I’ve seen people run. I’ve seen multiple illegal U-turns. I’ve even seen people driving the wrong way down a one-way street on more than one occasion. Then there’s the three fender benders in which others have run into my vehicle.
Thanks to this, I’m constantly on the look out wondering what others will do to achieve their own ends in getting from point A to point B. On a near daily basis, I’m in at least one near miss. Whether it’s because I get cut off by someone not paying attention, because of someone on their phone not paying attention and swerving between lanes, or any other reason, the common thread is lack of care. The thing I hate most about the whole issue is I find myself not completely abiding by the rules of the road out of care for my own safety. Another thing I hate is in instances I’ve been involved in wrecks, the other person defaults and points the finger to me, when I know unequivocally, I’m not at fault. Too many times others are only so happy to point fingers, blame, and shame. There is no sense of responsibility. There is however a truly honest sense of how people actually are when things get real. That’s largely why I don’t think of car crashes much in terms of “accidents” any more. That implies there was nothing that could have been done to avoid the wreck, when in many cases it could have been avoided. The suggestion then is ineptitude at best, and outright selfishness at worst.
The reason I talk about this is because I’m a student of city planning. My views are my own, and don’t necessarily reflect others in the profession. What I’m concerned about is how this behavior translates into other areas of life. How do I help improve a community when there seems to be a lack of care? Take for instance statistics available on the website for the City of Chapel Hill’s Vision Zero program. In 15 years from 2007 to 2022, there are 431 reported crashes. Note, these are reported crashes. Never mind about other crashes that go unreported. I suspect the reality is it’s much higher.
So what happens after the accident? People go their separate ways, manage their affairs and everything gets back to normal right? Most likely no. The impacts of what happens following wrecks are unique to each person. Some shrug it off. Others are in a state mental distress that requires therapy, and other long-term costs just to find some sense of normalcy, and that assumes a relatively minor wreck that doesn’t result in the death of someone. What happens then someone is killed? It impacts others immensely, and there likely would never be a full return to normal. All of this because of poor judgement, personal planning, and lack of caring. Hope for improvement is reserved for a time we can start to respect each other. I always have hope, but right now it’s in short supply.
“Viewpoints” on Chapelboro is a recurring series of community-submitted opinion columns. All thoughts, ideas, opinions and expressions in this series are those of the author, and do not reflect the work or reporting of 97.9 The Hill and Chapelboro.com.
