Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to include the word “may” in the sentence beginning with “Park St., an already busy street….”
Madison Police Department is urging drivers to prioritize caution after a car fatally struck a 17-year-old pedestrian in a crosswalk Feb. 5 and a truck crashed into a building Feb. 9, blocks apart on South Park Street, according to MPD Public Information Officer Stephanie Fryer.
The initial crash occurred when Madison West High School senior Alexander “Sasha” Rosen was hit while walking to a bus stop to commute to school, according to Channel 3000. It is the fifth crash in the same spot since 2023, but it is the first pedestrian-vehicle collision, according to Channel 3000.
Fryer said her department was aware the S. Park St. area had been experiencing issues with speeding prior to the fatal crash.
“We have been doing some proactive policing,” Fryer said. “We have officers, whether they’re on our traffic enforcement safety team, or just officers in the south district doing extra patrols in the area to try and keep speeding down, and other traffic violations. This was going on prior to the fatal crash.”
Fryer said that MPD’s enforcement campaign allowed members of the traffic enforcement safety team to respond within a minute to reports that a truck crashed into the Nutzy Mutz & Crazy Catz on S. Park St.
The day following the fatal crash, officers conducting the enforcement campaign in the area wrote 41 citations for traffic violations, from speeding to not making a full stop at a stop sign, Fryer said.
Park St., an already busy street, may see an influx of traffic due to construction-related road closures on John Nolen Drive that began late November, Fryer said.
“We take any concern that we get and we look into it,” Fryer said. “In this case, we got a complaint of speeding in the area and started putting officers [on the street. MPD] takes every complaint they get very seriously and develops a safety plan to make sure their neighbors feel safe in their own community.”
Park St. has a speed limit of 25 miles per hour in the areas the crashes occurred, according to Fryer. It has not been determined if the driver involved in the fatal crash had been speeding, yet, Fryer said.
There are two traffic investigators assigned to this case who are currently in the process of reviewing multiple videos of the fatal incident, according to Fryer.
“They’re hopeful that they’ll be able to determine what caused the crash, whether it was speed or driving while being distracted by something,” Fryer said. “They’re still in that review process, and they hope to have an update on this case, whether or not charges will be filed by the end of this week.”
Updates regarding the crashes can be found on their incident report webpages on the MPD website, Fryer said.
Madison West High School declined to comment on how their community is grappling with the loss of Rosen out of respect for his family.
In regards to safety precautions Rosen’s school may advise, Madison Metropolitan School District Public Information Officer Ian Folger said MMSD has no jurisdiction over the streets of Madison, and the incident occurred several miles off of campus.
“Be alert and just be very mindful of your surroundings, because it’s crucial that everyone plays a role in keeping our community safe, and it can start with you behind the wheel,” Fryer said.
