UNC Healthy Heels

Be Aware! Be Safe! Be Considerate! When it comes to pedestrian safety!

Yield to Heels day is Wednesday, April 13 at UNC!

Yield to Heels day serves to educate pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers around campus on the importance of visibility and awareness. The average college student is no stranger to walking or biking. Each day thousands of students at Carolina make the trek across campus, many by foot or bike, to attend classes and to participate in events and activities at UNC. It’s vital to remember safety when traveling from point to point on and around campus.

Implemented by the UNC Department of Public Safety and the UNC Highway Safety Research Center, Yield to Heels is an ongoing pedestrian safety awareness campaign that reminds all campus users to function as a team for a safer campus environment.  The campaign intends to remove myths about traffic and pedestrians and make helpful information about pedestrian safety available to the University community.

On Wednesday, Yield to Heels volunteers along with DPS officers will distribute educational fliers, t-shirts and retro-reflective safety items to pedestrians at crosswalks across campus. Volunteers will be stationed between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. at the following crosswalks:

• South Columbia Street near Fraternity Court;
• South Road at both the Student Recreation Center and the Bell Tower; and
• Manning Drive between the Dental School and the Thurston Bowles Building.

UNC Hospitals Police will also participate in the event and distribute fliers at crosswalks in front of the Memorial, Women’s, and Children’s Hospitals to extend the message of pedestrian awareness to another busy area on campus. Here are a few tips for pedestrians while walking around campus:

• Look across all lanes you must cross. Even though one vehicle has stopped, another may pass in another lane.
• Do not assume vehicles can stop. Gauge the flow of traffic before you step out onto the road and wait if necessary. Establish eye contact with drivers before crossing.
• Always look before you cross the road. Do not rely solely on pedestrian signals.
• Avoid wearing headphones or talking on a cell phone while crossing the street.
• Dress in light clothing and wear retro-reflective clothing/materials and/or carry a flashlight when walking at night.

[Many thanks to the UNC Highway Safety Research Center for writing this post for us. Visit their website for more information on pedestrian safety, bicycle safety, distracted driving and more!!]