Posted at: 09/25/2012 5:40 PM
Updated at: 09/25/2012 5:44 PM
By: Gordon Severson

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Volunteers Promote Pedestrian Safety

(ABC 6 News) -- An interesting scene in downtown Rochester. Where volunteers are continuously walking through crosswalks with bright yellow t-shirts carrying banners.

Organizers say it's all about promoting pedestrian safety.

The volunteers walked through crosswalks at the corner of Broadway Ave and 2nd street South. They’re doing this at six major cities in the state.
     
Their goal is create enough buzz to get motorists and pedestrians to think twice before going through a crosswalk.

Historically the worst month for accidents involving pedestrians is October. Followed closely by November and then December.

23 pedestrians have already died in crashes this year. It’s pretty high compared to having 16 fatalities this time last year.
     
Experts say both pedestrians and motorists are at fault.
     
Stats show half the crashes are caused by cars, and the other half by the walkers themselves.

"For motorists, just being aware that every corner is a crosswalk and they should expect pedestrians to be crossing the street. For pedestrians just to be diligent about when they're in the crosswalk making sure that they're making eye contact with the vehicle operators so they know that they're there,” MnDOT Bike and Pedestrian Director Tim Mitchell says.

Volunteers were out on Broadway from 3:00-6:00 PM Tuesday.