Traffic accidents continue to plague campus

For the second straight day, a series of campus-wide accidents kept University Police (UP) responding to students' calls for help.

UP spokeswoman Lt. Meg Ross said a total of nine vehicle accidents, including two hit-and-runs, occurred on campus Tuesday — an area that saw heavy rainfall and an influx of traffic because of the first day of school for Patel Partnership Elementary School and Anthony Pizzo Elementary School, both on Bull Run Drive.

So far, USF has had a total of 12 accidents on campus in the first two days of the fall semester, according to police reports.

"It's been a bad week — the weather definitely played a part in (the accidents today)," Ross said.

She said the number of campus-wide accidents seems to be "higher than usual, especially pedestrian crashes."

"We want to stress that (pedestrians) have the right of way," she said.  "But, pedestrians need to look out for cars."

Ross said that skateboarders and bicyclists are considered pedestrians, and they "need to use more caution because they are traveling faster" than someone who is just walking.

She said the first accident Tuesday involved two vehicles in parking lot 8C at 8:16 a.m. and the second involved two vehicles at Leroy Collins Boulevard near the Library at 10:51 a.m., both with no reported injuries.

She said that at 11:28 a.m. an accident was reported involving two vehicles on Magnolia Drive near Moffitt Cancer Center. At 11:57 a.m., another accident between two vehicles was reported at Magnolia and Beard drives, both with no reported injuries.

At 12:11 p.m., Ross said, two vehicles struck each other on level four of the Collins Boulevard Parking Facility.  The sixth accident call came in when a pedestrian was struck by a vehicle on Holly Drive near Physical Plant at 12:48 p.m. The pedestrian was cited for leaving the curb without yielding to traffic and was transported to University Community Hospital for minor injuries.

At 2:57 p.m., two vehicles struck each other on the northeast corner of the fourth floor of the Richard A. Beard Parking Facility. The eighth call came in when a vehicle hit a parked car on the fourth floor of the Collins Boulevard. Parking Facility at 2:21 p.m. and left the scene.

The final call came in at 4:56 p.m., notifying UP of a pedestrian hit by a vehicle in parking lot 46. The pedestrian did not go to the hospital.

"UP is out assisting with traffic," Ross said. "And we'll continue to be out patrolling and enforcing the laws."