A recent study by the Maryland State Highway Administration found more than 40,000 vehicles travel through this portion of Route 1 in Laurel each day, but on this morning that traffic would come to a sudden halt.
"I stepped out of the facility and saw what was going on,” said Jason Fridline, “They had cop cars blocking the road down there and down here and they had a tent set up and they were making the road where the man was hit and everything."
While the accident is still under investigation, at this point it appears the victim attempted to cross the busy highway, gambling that he could avoid any oncoming cars and paid for that decision with his life.
"It's our understanding right now that a pedestrian was crossing Route 1, not in a crosswalk,” said Sherry Llewellyn of the Howard County Police Department, “A 22-year old local man died in the collision. The driver who is also local stopped at the time of the crash and called 911 immediately."
Police later identified the victim as Marcus Antonio Fletcher of Laurel, and according to court records, the victim was just five foot six and only weighed 110 pounds, which would have made him that much more difficult to spot at dawn.
Those who live and work in the area say on what is already a treacherous road for people to jaywalk, due to the heavy volume of traffic, Fletcher also picked one of the worst areas to try to cross.
"My boss complains about it all the time, because its 35 (miles per hour) up there and then it turns into 50 right here,” said Fridline, “It gets way to fast right here. You can't pull out in the evening. You can't get out of here. It's a bad spot."
The driver of the Toyota Camry, which struck Fletcher has not been charged, but the accident is still under investigation.
