I have personally witnessed an alarming number of accidents at the intersection between 200 16th Street South and 3rd Avenue. When I say accidents, I do not mean minor fender-benders but horrific crashes that leave vehicles totaled and individuals, people just like you and me, traumatized. The suffering that results extends beyond physical pain. The accident that sent me on this journey involved a nursing student who, instead of taking the NCLEX (a crucial exam that determines if you will be licensed as a Registered Nurse), found herself being wheeled into an ambulance - screaming that she was going to miss the most important exam of her career. Nearby, a mother held her crying baby, and her two other sons stood, motionless and in shock, grappling with the reality of their own collision. Incidents like these are a weekly occurrence at this intersection and it’s time we take action. 

Numerous studies have shown that the implementation of traffic lights significantly reduces accidents, especially severe ones. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), traffic signals can reduce some types of crashes by more than half. The necessity is clear: install a traffic light at the intersection of 200 16th Street South and 3rd Avenue. It's a relatively small change that can prevent the kind of incidents that change lives irreversibly, and quite possibly, save lives. I've contacted the Birmingham Department of Transportation numerous times, and they always have the same answer: Unless somebody is killed, it's too much money that they prefer to allocate elsewhere.

Does someone really have to die before the city deems it worthy of installing a simple traffic light?