Memorial grows at site where UBC students were killed by vehicle that mounted campus sidewalk

A small memorial for two teenagestudents killed by a vehicle at the University of British Columbia's Vancouver campus began to slowly grow on Monday, as fellow students and faculty grapplewith the tragedyand questions of whether it could have been prevented.

Mourners and passersby came to the sidewalk one by one, pausing for a quiet moment or laying bouquets of flowers in the grass. Remnants of the crash shards of plastic and a sheared-off traffic pole stilllay nearby.

It had been fewerthan 36hours since twostudents were hit by a vehicle that veered onto the sidewalk on NW Marine Drive, near the UBC Botanical Garden, around 1:45 a.m. PT on Sunday.

Both students were 18 years old one male, one female.

RCMP said the driver of the vehicle, a 21-year-old man, was arrested at the scene andtaken to a local hospital withminor injuries. He was later released andwasexpected to appear in court at a later date.

Students, faculty call for road improvements

Police are still investigating the cause of the crash and are looking todetermine whetherspeed orimpairment played a role.

The crash site is just north of the botanical gardens, behind the Totem Park residence. Marine Drive is a wide road stretchingnorthwest around the coastline and, at night, is generally devoid of traffic.

The speed limit drops from 80 km/h to 60 and then to40 as northbound drivers approachthe site of the crash, though there are no traffic lights,speed bumps or speed traps to help enforce the change.

Despite no official word ofacause, online student forums were soonfilled withspeculation the crash was caused by reckless driving in some form. Several who said they lived in the nearby dorms said it's typical to hear carstaking "joyrides" through the area at night.

"Absolutely tragic, but not surprising," wrote one user who identified themselves as a former first-year resident at the dorm.

UBC meeting with ministry, police

One faculty member recalled similar conversations in 2011, after a motorcyclist was killed on the same road.

"When I was on scene at that accident about 10 years ago, people living in the area were talking about how they keep seeing people speeding and they've complainedbefore and nothing was done until someone has actually died," said Benjamin Cheung, a lecturer at UBC's psychology department, referencing a fatal crash at Marine andKullahun Drive around four kilometres southeastof Sunday's incident.

"There's obvious anger [now]," said Cheung."A lot of feeling like this could have been avoidable."

A UBC spokesperson declined an interview Monday, but saidthe university will be meeting with the Ministry of Transportation andRCMP to discuss road safety concerns and possible upgrades in wake of the crash.

RCMP said officials won't be releasing the names of the victims to protect their families' privacy.

The university said grief and trauma counsellors are available to students.The university's student society also offers mental health support.

Investigators have asked any witnesses or drivers with dashcam video of the crash to contact police at604-224-1322.