KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Some of Knoxville's safe-street advocates, elected leaders and neighbors honored victims killed in car crashes at Market Square.
Bike Walk Knoxville hosted Knoxville's World Day of Remembrance, an event recognized internationally. Zoe Scott, Bike Walk's advocacy director, said it was an opportunity to focus on both the present and the future.
"We really just want to take this opportunity to gather and remember the people who’ve lost their lives here in Knoxville to traffic violence, and take an opportunity to think about what we can do to be better," Scott said.
The group shared stories of loved ones lost and their hopes to make Knoxville's streets safer for pedestrians.
Michelle Lawson shared her story. Her son Quinton Fields died after being hit by a car that was allegedly speeding downtown on Henley Street in 2022.
Teary-eyed, Lawson talked about Quinton's fun-loving personality that brightened up any room he entered.
"It was nice to hear them say I was advocating because I didn't know I was doing that. I thought I was just a mom sharing her story," she said.
Mayor Indya Kincannon said there are short-and-long plans underway to make Knoxville's streets safer.
"We’re trying to do better by using a healthier mindset, ‘safety first,’ but also trying to improve our speed infrastructure; the design of our streets, bulb-outs, better light sequencing," Kincannon said.
She said car crashes were becoming increasingly deadly in Knoxville, with crashes killing 36 people in 2023.
City leaders have laid out the plan to improve Knoxville's streets in Vision Zero. Recent improvements along North Broadway are an example of the multi-agency, multi-faceted approach Knoxville's leaders are following.