Is Alyssa Haynes joking in “GW’s traffic woes” (April 9, p. 4)? Does she actually think the city of Washington, D.C., is going to close H Street between 23rd and 21st Streets for GW students? The streets of D.C. were here long before the University set up shop. The streets are for the cars, not for us to walk on. This is why we have sidewalks. While our University is on these streets, it does not mean we have a monopoly over them. Cars and commuters rely on the street to maneuver around the city.

Every day I am dismayed by students completely ignoring traffic that has the right of way and acting as if they do not see the cars.

I am sure the commuters in the evening rush are not thrilled to be sharing the streets with students who pay no attention and continuously walk in front of cars with out warning. Also what should they do with the Marvin Center garage? Many drivers and workers depend on the garage. We cannot simply get rid of it.

Additionally, part of the uniqueness of GW is that we are part of the city. A sense of community is not going to be instantly ignited by eliminating traffic between those streets. I simply cannot understand Hanes’s argument. Having the streets run through campus is part of the experience at GW, and they were here long before the University. Part of the deal with having a University in the heart of the city is having traffic, and I cannot believe that someone would have the audacity to propose that we close off a street just because it is an inconvenience to the GW students. We are in college. We are mature. And yes, we can share the streets with cars.

-Laura Jennings
sophomore