FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The 11th annual Crosswalk Safety Awareness Day will be held in Fayetteville and on campus from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 8. Student members of the U of A chapters of Chi Omega, Alpha Delta Pi and Kappa Delta sororities and Sigma Chi fraternity will be at the main crosswalks on campus to remind pedestrians and drivers of the importance of crosswalk safety.

The event is monitored on campus by the University of Arkansas Police Department.

Drivers are required by law to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks, but pedestrians are also reminded that they need to be careful and alert in a crosswalk, and not assume a driver stop.

In 2011 the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported that 42 pedestrians were killed in traffic accidents.

Crosswalk Safety Awareness Day is sponsored every year by the Community Policing Division of the Fayetteville Police Department and led by Paula Marinoni, former University of Arkansas cheerleader and Fayetteville native, who founded the event in an effort to keep citizens safe in crosswalks.