PORTLAND, Maine — A group of family members, advocates, and community leaders gathered this week at the corner of Fore and India Streets in Portland, the same intersection where Joe Lewis was struck and killed last year , to remember victims of traffic crashes and call for safer streets across Maine.

“It was a brisk sunny day,” said Emma Etnier, Lewis’ stepdaughter. “He was crossing this crosswalk behind us and was hit by a car.”

According to the Maine Department of Transportation , there have been 405 pedestrian and bicycle crashes so far this year, and 24 of those crashes were fatal.

Advocates say the numbers show the urgency of better protections, especially in busy downtown areas. Paul Drinan, founder of Vision Zero Maine, said unsafe driving remains a daily reality.

“Even to

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