Pedestrian struck last week on South Robert Street in West St. Paul dies

Nick Ferraro, Pioneer Press
Updated ·2 min read

A pedestrian who was hit Friday while trying to cross South Robert Street in West St. Paul has died of her injuries.

Leticia Maria Vasquez, 36, of Brooklyn Park, died Sunday at Regions Hospital, where she’d been in critical condition with head trauma and other injuries, West St. Paul police Lt. Matt Swenke said Wednesday. Vasquez had ties to West St. Paul and was in town visiting family when she was struck while walking in the crosswalk at the intersection of South Robert Street and Wentworth Avenue just before 10 a.m., Swenke said.

A preliminary investigation shows Vasquez had the right of way and that the motorist, a 23-year-old Forest Lake man driving a GMC pickup, was making a left-hand turn from westbound Wentworth on a flashing yellow arrow, Swenke said.

At this point in the investigation, he said, nothing shows the motorist was speeding or driving recklessly, and there is no indication that alcohol, drugs or cellphone use contributed to the crash.

Investigators are working with the Minnesota State Patrol in reconstructing the collision and reviewing data from the pickup and the driver’s cellphone.

The motorist has been cooperative with the investigation and is “very distraught, to say the least,” Swenke said.

He has not been charged, Swenke said, adding “we want to have a full understanding of what took place before we would have it reviewed for criminal charges.”

Safety study underway

The collision happened amid an effort to address the safety and connectivity of South Robert Street.

The 2.5-mile, retail-heavy state road received a $42.5 million reconstruction that was completed in 2017 and meant to improve its look, functionality and safety. The project included building landscaped center medians; adding two lanes north of Butler Street by removing on-street parking; and replacing the road’s aging pavement, traffic-control signals and streetlights.

“Despite those improvements, the section of roadway has seen continued safety concerns for users,” the Minnesota Department of Transportation said in a new release on Friday, which was issued about two hours before the fatal collision and announced a new study is underway.

The MnDOT began the study in February “to identify possible improvements to safety and connectivity for people who walk, bike, use transit and drive,” the news release says.

The public is invited to share their feedback at 6 p.m. June 4 at the Wentworth Library, located at 199 E. Wentworth Ave., or provide comments by going to mndothwy3srobertststudy.com by June 9.

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