Mistakes to Avoid Making as a Pedestrian
Apr 17, 2020 11:55 AM EDT
If you enjoy getting some exercise and fresh air, then going for a walk is a great way of mixing up your daily scenery. Choosing to walk on public roads where cars travel will make you a pedestrian.
As you likely know, driving comes with a wide array of challenges. You need to be focused on the road at all times while watching other drivers to predict a potential problem.
Looking out for pedestrians makes driving more complicated and can easily create a scenario for an error and accident to occur. This is troublesome because injuries associated with pedestrian knockdowns are rarely minor.
You're better off preventing a pedestrian accident, which starts with understanding what mistakes to avoid. We'll illustrate five key mistakes you must not make as a pedestrian below.
Being Distracted
One of the biggest errors you can make as a pedestrian is being distracted.
You've likely heard that distracted driving is a problem, but so is distracted walking. While you won't seriously injure someone should you walk into them, you need to pay attention for your safety.
When you're distracted, you aren't paying attention to what's happening on the road. Because of this, you won't notice when cars are coming and when you might need to jump out of the way.
For example, the light might illuminate signaling you to cross and so you begin to walk. If you're watching something on your phone, then you won't notice a car barrelling down the street with no plans of stopping.
As a pedestrian, you are always in danger of being hit by a car. As a result, you need to avoid doing anything that impairs your ability to detect and react to hazards.
This means putting your phone away, keeping your headphones out, and looking up at all times. Doing this greatly increases your odds of preventing an accident with a car.
Unmarked Crossing
Another glaring mistake is crossing at unmarked locations.
At most street intersections, you'll find crosswalks that enable you to get to the other side of the street. These work by signaling for you to cross when traffic is flowing parallel to you and not at risk of hitting you.
For example, if you're walking north and need to cross an intersection to continue in that direction, then the signal will light up for you to walk when the traffic light is green for cars to drive north and south.
As you can see, crosswalks are designed to get you safely across the street. On the other hand, crossing wherever you feel like it is a huge mistake.
Not only are you lacking a built-in way of crossing correctly, but you're putting drivers in a difficult situation. They'll need to react quickly to avoid hitting you and they aren't expecting you to be there.
Be sure that you only cross at marked crosswalks when it's indicated for you to go.
Moving Slowly
Moving slowly in the crosswalk is another error that you'll want to avoid.
There are two reasons why this is wrong; it frustrates drivers and they won't be expecting you to still be in the crosswalk.
When you need to cross the street, it means that your crossing prevents drivers from going through the intersection. If you're still in the crosswalk once the light changes, this means that you'll be in their way without having a signal to cross.
With this in mind, you will be impeding their progress and this will irritate them. If they're having a particularly bad day, then they might charge at you and force you to jump out of the way or get hit.
The other outcome here is that a driver won't notice you in the crosswalk. If you've stopped because you dropped something and the light switches, then you can get hit by a driver who didn't see you bend over.
Crosswalks are often timed and you need to be across the street before the timer ends.
Assuming Cars Will Stop
You should also never assume that cars will stop for you.
If you're legally crossing at a crosswalk, then you do have the right of way to cross. That said, this does not guarantee that drivers will stop as they should.
There's also the particularly dangerous situation of crossing the street when a driver can also turn left. Some streets allow for left turns on blinking yellow arrows, meaning that it's safe to turn when no traffic is coming.
The other part of a blinking yellow arrow is that it requires yielding to pedestrians. Many drivers forget this step and get so wrapped up in checking for cars that they neglect to look for walkers.
With this in mind, you should never expect that a car will do as they should. They might be confused, distracted, impaired, upset, or oblivious to the situation.
Walking in the Suburbs
A final mistake is walking in the suburbs.
You might not expect it, but a major percentage of pedestrian accidents happen in the suburbs. There are two main reasons for this; high speed limits and inadequate walking space.
With higher speed limits, cars are going to be traveling faster than in the city. This means more time to stop, less time to react to a pedestrian, and a greater risk of getting hit.
Many suburban roads also lack sidewalks. If they do have them, they're often small and too close to the road.
Making matters worse, there are few marked crosswalks on suburban roads. This means that you might be tempted to cross when it's convenient, which can also lead to an accident.
Considering this, it's highly dangerous to walk on suburban roads. Limit the time that you spend doing it and seek alternative transportation if possible.
Closing Thoughts
Pedestrians are in danger anytime they're near the road. One small mistake can cause a pedestrian accident, which often results in death.
To avoid being hit by a car, you need to know what mistakes you should not be making. A few of them include being distracted, unmarked crossing, moving slowly, assuming cars will stop, and walking in the suburbs.
When you make fewer mistakes as a pedestrian, you have a greater chance of avoiding an accident. If you're always cautious and watching carefully, then you can prevent getting hit in almost any situation.
