For more than four years I have been listening to the University talk about pedestrian safety. During my time here, more than one person has been tragically killed or injured on the streets in and around Champaign. Therefore, it is still mind-boggling to me that the University and the municipalities of Champaign and Urbana have not done a better job of removing snow from our streets. Being from Chicago, where mayoral elections are decided by the quality of snow removal, I am consistently appalled by the dangerous conditions that appear every time it snows. I understand that plowing the streets takes time and costs money, but there is no reason why major thoroughfares remain unplowed 12 to 18 hours after snow has fallen. Streets like Neil, Kirby, Lincoln, First, Fourth, Sixth, Wright, Gregory, Springfield and University need to be clear to ensure the safety of students, faculty and the public at large. When I woke up this morning I found out about the accident involving our own basketball players it made me sick. I just pray that they are OK and will make a full recovery. It shouldn’t take an incident like this for Champaign-Urbana to get serious about snow removal.