What a sad weekend on Portland's streets.

On Saturday night, a man tried to cross Foster Road at 122nd Avenue and was struck by a car and initially declared deceased by police. The great docs at OHSU were later able to somehow revive the man, whose name has not been released.

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  • DAVE NEESON
The intersection where the man was hit and not quite killed is where two of Portland's most dangerous streets cross. During one week last August, two people on bikes were hit on 122nd Ave, one who was killed and one sent into a coma. In November, two young friends were struck while crossing Foster, killing one instantly and sparking a heartfelt pedestrian vigil. The survivor, 29-year-old Jessica Finlay, passed away last Friday after laying in a coma for three months. The police and District Attorney's office are still investigating the pairs' death.

The night Finlay died, two students crossing the street near Franklin High on SE 52nd and Woodward were injured in a hit-and-run. As BikePortland noted, that stretch of road is slated for bike/ped safety improvements... since first being identified as a priority 15 years ago.

All this tragedy points to a conclusion: if you don't think Portland needs to invest in making its streets safer, you're crazy. That means we need to push for better sidewalks, better-lit crosswalks, separated bike paths and more stringent punishments for people who use cars as deadly weapons.

Update 4:36 pm: Catherine Ciarlo at the mayor's office says that the city plans to install a flashing pedestrian signal in the crosswalk where Finlay and friend Lindsay Leonard were killed before the end of the month.