Pedestrian Accidents

It’s no surprise that car collisions with pedestrians often times yield an extremely high potential for serious injury. Pedestrians, on the other hand, should always follow the advice ingrained to us as children, which is to always look both ways before attempting to cross the street. While both drivers and pedestrians should always take appropriate measures to avoid such accidents, accidents unfortunately still happen. Read up on the most common ways pedestrian error has led to accidents.

Pedestrian Error

While pedestrians have an incredible ability to avoid being struck by vehicles, it is thought to be very rare for any pedestrian accidents to happen outside of the roadway. So long as pedestrians use the appropriate measures of caution before entering a roadway, their chances of being struck by a car are greatly decreased. However, those chances can be greatly increased due to the following reasons:

• Ignoring Traffic Controls – We are all familiar with the “walk” and “don’t walk” signals seen at traffic intersections. These signals are designed to provide pedestrians with enough time to safely cross the roadway. Once the “don’t walk” sign is showing, pedestrians that are already in the middle of crossing should continue, whereas other pedestrians still on the corner of the roadway should wait for the next light. If there are no pedestrian signals, pedestrians should always wait for a green light before passing and never cross when the light is at yellow.

• Jaywalking – Pedestrians should never cross a street in inappropriate or unexpected areas. Doing this puts pedestrians at a greater risk of injury. Pedestrians should always cross at an intersection or a designated intersection.

• The "Darting" Child – On the occasion, children can be found unexpectedly darting into the roadway. Often times they are chasing after a pet, a toy and even another child. Drivers should always exercise extreme precaution whenever they see children playing in a neighborhood, or as they pass a park, school or other area where children can be expected.

• The Parent In Pursuit – If children are seen running into a roadway, it is likely that a parent will be the next seen running into a roadway. It is safe to say that a parent will run into a roadway with no regard whatsoever of oncoming traffic since the safety of the child will be their priority.

• Walking on A Limited Access Highway – Highway traffic moves at extreme speeds and the last thing drivers expect to see are pedestrians on the roadway. If a roadway is ever marked “NO Pedestrians”, respect it. Should your vehicle break down on a limited access highway, take great care if you decide to get out and perform maintenance on your vehicle or try to walk somewhere for help.