With this weekend's bad news, Chapel Hill's pedestrian death toll rises to THREE in the past month. May 17: Barbara Boone Sims was killed crossing Weaver Dairy Road at Perkins Drive, May 15: Lisa Carolyn Moran was fatally hit by a bus on Manning Drive near UNC Hospital, April 27: Clifton Walker Steed was killed crossing MLK Blvd at Hillsborough Street. All were killed within a block of the NC 86 corridor (South Columbia Street and Martin Luther King Boulevard).
I know the Town has studied the MLK portion of the corridor and proposed some pedestrian improvements (PDF report), but none have been implemented yet as far as I know. We also need to remember that crosswalks don't exist in a vacuum, we need safe sidewalks, well-lit bus shelters, adequate bike lanes, and much more.