THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY, JULY 6, 2011
PAGE 11
EUDORA
7
Committee vows to bring K-10 barriers
BY HANNAH DAVIS
hdavis@kansan.com
Tina Hopson is a private person. Her husband, Mayor Scott Hopson, is more comfortable in the limelight. Recently, Tina, a mother and grandmother, has had no problem knocking on strangers' doors, tabling in public parks and speaking with the media.
On April 20, a crossover accident on Kansas Highway 10 claimed the lives of two Eudora citizens, 5-year-old Cainan Shutt and 24-year-old Ryan Pittman. That accident thrust Hopson into the public sphere.
"I don't have any problems putting myself out there," Hopson said. "I am at heart a private person but that takes a backseat when we're dealing with something of this magnitude."
Mayor Hopson said the accident served as the catalyst for the formation of the Kansas Highway 10 Advisory Committee. The committee's goal is to generate a plan to improve K-10's safety. Committee member Capt. Doug Baker, Johnson County Sheriff's Department, said they met with Kansas Department of Transportation representatives on June 23 to review K-10 crash data.
"They said we may have a valid point, but we are competing for funds within the state." Baker said.
Committee Member Tom Mulinazzi is a professor of civil engineering at the University of Kansas. His role is to "provide the facts and let the people make the decision."
"There are two arguments in this situation. There is the emotional argument, which is very compelling, and the factual and fiscal argument. We have to figure out how much this will cost and how many lives we can save," Mulinazzi said.
There are three types of median barriers: cable median barriers, guardrail barriers and concrete barriers. According to Mulinazzi, the installation of concrete barriers on 1-70 in Missouri reduced the number of head on collisions by 99 percent. Concrete barriers prevent cars from crossing over into incoming traffic and redirect vehicles forward, instead of spinning the car back into its original lane going the wrong direction.
"Cable barriers and guard rails snag at cars, causing property damage, personal injury and in some cases fatalities," Mulinazzi said.
Tina Hopson and Ali Shutt, Cainan Shutt's mother, are circulating a petition that asks Gov. Sam Brownback to install any one of the three types of median barriers on K-10. Volunteers go door-to-door and table at public parks and community events collecting signatures. She plans to set up a table at Lawrence's downtown sidewalk festival on July 15.
Citizens interested in signing her petition or learning more about installing medians on K-10 can contact Tina Hopson on her Facebook page, "Support the Effort to Install Crossover Cables on K-10."
"We've got the momentum, but we need to get this petition out there," she said. "I will drive to citizen's front door if that is what it takes to get them to sign this."
Tina Hopson isn't concerned with dollars and cents. She is concerned with
"It may be a year, two years or more. But I know we will be done when we can walk away knowing that we've helped another family avoid losing a loved one," she said.
Mayor Hopson's committee will meet four more times over the next year. Their next meeting will take place July 14. They plan to present Gov. Brownback with a plan for improved commuter safety on K-10 by 2012.
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On April 20, 24-year-old Ryan Pittman and 5-year-old Cainan Shutt were killed in a crossover accident on Kansas Highway 10.
Chris Bronson/KANSAN
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