Kaynessa Providence (junior-premedicine) sat at the corner of College Avenue and Allen Street listening to her headset while waiting for the bus.

Though she doesn't often listen to headphones while crossing highly congested traffic areas, Providence said she talks on her cell phone, which she said she thinks does not cause safety concerns.

"You're on the cell phone; you're not deaf. You might be a little distracted, but you're not impaired," she said.

Behaviors such as listening to music or talking on a cell phone can be dangerous for pedestrians, who may not be aware of their surroundings and cause them to disobey traffic signals, said Amy Story, State College borough engineer.

"When they're on a cell phone or listening to music, they ... get lost in it. Their awareness of what needs to be done, like looking both ways, gets shortened, or it's not even there," Story said.

Music instructor Terry Paynter said the level of distraction one encounters while listening to headsets and crossing the street depends on the genre of music as well as the person's mood. The music serves as an emotional trigger if a song is associated with a powerful memory and increases the level of distraction, he said.

Highly energizing music, as well as more relaxing music such as Enya, can pose a threat to pedestrians if they aren't aware of their surroundings.

"Soothing music might also lull you ... you let it wash over you, and then wham, you get hit by a bus," Paynter said.

A 2002 survey conducted by Penn State civil engineering professor Paul Jovanis and his students showed 57 percent of the pedestrians crossing at the College Avenue and Allen Street crosswalk exhibited potentially dangerous behaviors, he said.

According to the study, 54 percent were talking to other friends, 8 percent were talking on a cell phone, 7 percent were reading and 5 percent were eating.

Tony Lopinsky, State College community relations police officer, said pedestrians need to increase their awareness to ensure the safety of others.

"Walk with safety-mindedness, and use common sense when crossing the street ... that would alleviate a lot of the problems," Lopinsky said.

Lopinsky said in 2003 there were 29 pedestrian-vehicle crashes due to various distractions.

"When you talk to motorists, they blame pedestrians, and when you talk to pedestrians, they blame motorists," he said.

Jonathan Bacon (sophomore-science) said he tries to avoid distractions such as listening to music or talking on a cell phone when walking or driving downtown.

"It's just one more thing that will get you hit walking across the street," he said. He added that as a driver, he doesn't feel he should be forced to yield to pedestrians who choose to disobey traffic signals.

In an effort to increase pedestrian safety at crosswalks, a study is being conducted to gauge the feasibility of re-timing traffic signals at downtown intersections. "A three-second delay would be enough to give a head start to pedestrians," Story said. "They're legally out in the crosswalk and have the full right of way ... with a green light, most pedestrians have finished their crossing."

Story said pedestrians should take preventative measures to protect themselves by knowing when to cross.

"They either don't know the rules or assume that because they're the pedestrian, they have the right of way," she said.

State College Borough Council member Cathy Dauler said she believes more police patrols might curb pedestrian violations.

"I think there is a reluctance on the part of the police to enforce the laws, which do exist. I'm not sure why ... maybe they think it's too time consuming. My hope is that after we spend more time on an educational program, that we can then move to [improve] enforcement," she said.

Lopinsky said additional police enforcement would not stop students and residents from jaywalking and disobeying traffic signals. "We issue tickets as frequently as we can, but can't put a cop on every corner ... it doesn't matter how many police officers you put downtown," he said. "They'll violate the law on another intersection."