Post by DontDentMyCar on Jan 23, 2014 12:03:05 GMT -5
Remember using these standards will help teach children. It's not all about you and your safety, but about the safety of others as well. There's probably nothing worse than dying because some driver swerved to avoid someone jay-walking idiot that resulted in the death of someone or a child waiting for a walk signal. There are so many reason to learn and practice these simple 'rules of the road'. The first reason is 'IT COULD SAFE YOUR LIFE.'
1) Walk on Sidewalks, if you have to walk in the street do so facing traffic. Stop at the curb before entering the street. This will help prevent collisions with bicyclists and give drivers a better chance on seeing you and understanding your intentions of entering the street.
2) Cross only at street corners, preferably those with a traffic light and within marked crosswalks.
3) Use Walk/Don't Walk signals.
4) Give yourself the most time to cross by waiting for newly turned green or walk signal, and if you can walk with others.
5) Look left and right before crossing, and keep your eye out for bicyclists, turning vehicles or those backing up.
6) Make eye contact with drivers that are approaching the intersection to see if they see you.
7) Wear light colored clothing at night or in bad weather.
8) Don't enter the street between parked vehicles. Not only is it hard to see pedestrians, but a vehicle could backup into you, or you could set an example for children to do the same and their height can completely prevent them from being seen.
9) Put down the cell phone when crossing, or at least look both ways and stay alert.
10) Hold the hands of younger children, you never know they may trip, drop something and bend over making them even harder to see, or may need to be pulled to safety fast.
11) Pushing a stroller? Don't use your baby to stop vehicles… stay on the curb and wait for the cross light.
12) When getting children out of vehicles, do so on the curb side of your vehicle. Many new vans offer doors on both sides, but the 'street side door' is actually for one way streets and the left side IS at the curb. Stay smart and teach your children how to be safe themselves.
I once stepped into a street that was a one way and pretty narrow, enough for a single line of vehicles. Even though the walk signal said 'Don't Walk' the traffic at the crosswalk had stopped and it was such a short distance I felt it was no problem getting across. So I proceeded to walk between the 'stuck in traffic' vehicles. I then noticed that a woman followed me. As I approached the outer edge of the stuck vehicles I looked to my left to ensure that no vehicle or bike rider was passing. The woman following me didn't look and took instead a few quick steps to try to make it to the sidewalk. She was hit by a car trying to make the light and passing the 'stuck in traffic' vehicles, and knocked a few feet to her ass. Then she looked directly at me with the look of 'what happened, I thought you knew it was okay to cross the street?'
Well I never did that again. I realized that it wasn't just about my own safety, but that I could influence others to walk into the street as well and it could end up ruining their day.
My recommendations are roughly based on the NYPD's attempt to inform the public about being smart as a pedestrian. In the end, if there's a collision between a pedestrian and a vehicle it's the pedestrian who loses. Yes, pedestrians have the most to lose. So while I will continue to work to encourage drivers to follow the law, I will also encourage pedestrians to not act stupid around roads. I am also a pedestrian and often wonder if I'll be in danger because, not of a vehicle who is in the road where they belong, but because some nut of a pedestrian might cause that vehicle to swerve up onto the sidewalk. I'm sure if that happened the jay-walking pedestrian would not 'hang around' and say they're sorry, nope they would probably hasten a retreat and try to forget the incident, while I or my child would be laid out.
1) Walk on Sidewalks, if you have to walk in the street do so facing traffic. Stop at the curb before entering the street. This will help prevent collisions with bicyclists and give drivers a better chance on seeing you and understanding your intentions of entering the street.
2) Cross only at street corners, preferably those with a traffic light and within marked crosswalks.
3) Use Walk/Don't Walk signals.
4) Give yourself the most time to cross by waiting for newly turned green or walk signal, and if you can walk with others.
5) Look left and right before crossing, and keep your eye out for bicyclists, turning vehicles or those backing up.
6) Make eye contact with drivers that are approaching the intersection to see if they see you.
7) Wear light colored clothing at night or in bad weather.
8) Don't enter the street between parked vehicles. Not only is it hard to see pedestrians, but a vehicle could backup into you, or you could set an example for children to do the same and their height can completely prevent them from being seen.
9) Put down the cell phone when crossing, or at least look both ways and stay alert.
10) Hold the hands of younger children, you never know they may trip, drop something and bend over making them even harder to see, or may need to be pulled to safety fast.
11) Pushing a stroller? Don't use your baby to stop vehicles… stay on the curb and wait for the cross light.
12) When getting children out of vehicles, do so on the curb side of your vehicle. Many new vans offer doors on both sides, but the 'street side door' is actually for one way streets and the left side IS at the curb. Stay smart and teach your children how to be safe themselves.
I once stepped into a street that was a one way and pretty narrow, enough for a single line of vehicles. Even though the walk signal said 'Don't Walk' the traffic at the crosswalk had stopped and it was such a short distance I felt it was no problem getting across. So I proceeded to walk between the 'stuck in traffic' vehicles. I then noticed that a woman followed me. As I approached the outer edge of the stuck vehicles I looked to my left to ensure that no vehicle or bike rider was passing. The woman following me didn't look and took instead a few quick steps to try to make it to the sidewalk. She was hit by a car trying to make the light and passing the 'stuck in traffic' vehicles, and knocked a few feet to her ass. Then she looked directly at me with the look of 'what happened, I thought you knew it was okay to cross the street?'
Well I never did that again. I realized that it wasn't just about my own safety, but that I could influence others to walk into the street as well and it could end up ruining their day.
My recommendations are roughly based on the NYPD's attempt to inform the public about being smart as a pedestrian. In the end, if there's a collision between a pedestrian and a vehicle it's the pedestrian who loses. Yes, pedestrians have the most to lose. So while I will continue to work to encourage drivers to follow the law, I will also encourage pedestrians to not act stupid around roads. I am also a pedestrian and often wonder if I'll be in danger because, not of a vehicle who is in the road where they belong, but because some nut of a pedestrian might cause that vehicle to swerve up onto the sidewalk. I'm sure if that happened the jay-walking pedestrian would not 'hang around' and say they're sorry, nope they would probably hasten a retreat and try to forget the incident, while I or my child would be laid out.