SILVER SPRING, Md. — It's been a dangerous week for pedestrians being hit. Within a span of 36 hours, there were four pedestrians hit, including a deadly accident on Virginia Route 1 in Lorton, Va. The other three crashes happened in Montgomery County.
Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service Chief Spokesman Pete Piringer said on Tuesday they responded to Georgia Avenue and Colesville Road in Silver Spring around 6 a.m. on a report of a pedestrian hit.
The second accident happened around 6:30 a.m. on Veirs Mill Road and Newport Mill Road in Silver Spring.
The third pedestrian collision happened around 11 a.m. on Nebel Street and Marinelli Road in Rockville. All three pedestrians suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Across Montgomery County, there have been 53 pedestrian-involved collisions during the month of January, according to Vision Zero data analyst Wade Holland.
Vision Zero is a group that is trying to cut down on the number of pedestrians hit.
Seven of those crashes had serious injuries and three of them were fatal, Holland said. He said they typically see between 30-50 pedestrian crashes during the month of January.
Out of the three fatal crashes, two of them happened along Rockville Pike. Maryland State Highway Administration recently approved adding "No Right Turn on Red" signs at the intersection of Rockville Pike and Marinelli Road, near the White Flint Metro Station.
Just this past weekend, organizers for Vision Zero hosted a town hall meeting to hear feedback from the community. Vision Zero said its goal is to not have a single fatal or severe accident by 2030.
To help reach this goal, the county executive recommended allocating $266.6 million in the proposed six-year Capital Improvements Plan Budget for projects directly related to the County's Vision Zero Initiative. The recommendations include allocating $4.5 million to improve mobility and safety around the future Purple Line stations. Another recommendation includes adding $4.2 million for Sidewalk Program minor projects. The proposal still needs to be approved by the County Council this spring.
Learn more about Vision Zero here.