Car hits biker on Washington Road

A car struck a University employee late Wednesday afternoon at the crosswalk near Ivy Lane on Washington Road.

Matthew Montondo, office coordinator for the molecular biology department, was riding his bicycle through the crosswalk when a black 2006 Honda Civic driven by Terrence Curran, a resident of Cranford, N.J., hit him, according to a statement issued by Princeton Township Police.

Curran, who was driving northbound, slowed down at the crosswalk to allow pedestrians to pass. Once the pedestrians crossed, Curran drove forward, at which point Montondo rode his bike through the crosswalk, according to the statement.

The bike and the car collided, and Montondo rolled onto the hood of the car and fell to the ground, causing head trauma, according to the statement.

The Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad transported Montondo to the Helene Fuld Trauma Center in Trenton. He is currently in fair condition, said Donald MacNeill, who works at the center.

The Princeton Township Police Department and Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office are currently investigating the incident to decide whether to bring charges against Curran.

“We adore Matt; he’s a stellar staff member,” said Linda Berkowitz, staff affairs manager for the molecular biology department. “We want him to get well soon.”

A larger safety issue

Yesterday’s accident was not the first on this section of Washington Road.

On Feb. 15, 2007, a vehicle traveling south near Frist Campus Center skidded out of control due to inclement weather. The vehicle headed toward a nearby bus shelter, plowing through a sign in the process.

Theodore Christie, a maintenance assistant at Frist, was standing at the bus stop when the driver lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle bounced off the curb in front of the shelter and hit Christie as he tried to get out of the way.

Christie did not have life-threatening injuries.

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University spokeswoman Cass Cliatt ’96 said neither she nor Public Safety had data on the frequency of car accidents at the crosswalk.

“Everybody who crosses there, we’re concerned about,” Berkowitz said of the safety of the crosswalk, which has blinking warning lights on the ground but no standing signs or lights. Lewis Thomas Lab, which houses the molecular biology department, is very close to the crosswalk.

“There’s been a problem there. There’s going to be a problem there in the future,” said Sam Wang, an associate professor of molecular biology. “We need to make sure that what happened to Matt doesn’t happen to another person.”

Solving the problem, however, may be more complicated because the University is not solely responsible for the thoroughfare.

“The difficult thing about that road is that it’s both part of the campus and also ... state highway [571],” Wang explained. “As a result there’s a conflict between the ... people driving through the campus and people who work or live on campus and are trying to get across that road,” he explained.

According to the University’s 10-year Campus Plan, the University has planned to construct a pedestrian and bicycle bridge that will allow individuals to cross Washington Road between the genomics building and the new neuroscience and psychology site.

“There [are] way too many things like [Montondo’s accident] that happen on Washington Road,” Natalie Shivers, associate University architect for planning, said in an interview.

“Let’s hope that the bridge alleviates those kinds of problems,” she said, adding that it will be “heavily used.”

“The main function is really pedestrian safety,” Shivers explained.

“I think it’s a step in the right direction,” Wang said of the bridge.

Shivers added that one proposal in the Campus Plan is the addition of islands along Washington Road for pedestrians to have an intermediate stopping point when crossing the street.