Be a Safe Pedestrian!

Look left, right and left again before stepping off the curb, and don’t step out from behind parked cars.

Wear light or reflective clothing when walking on roads at night.

Always walk against traffic if there’s not a sidewalk.

Heed speed. Faster vehicles dramatically escalate risks. At 20 mph, 5 percent of pedestrian crashes are deadly; at 30 mph fatalities jump to 45 percent.

Don’t rely on engine sound—use your eyes. Hybrid cars are silent when operating in battery mode.

Cross at crosswalks and obey “hand/man” pedestrian signals.

Teach children to obey crosswalk signs, and have young children cross with an adult. (Under age 10 they’re poor judges of speed, distance and spatial relationships.)

Beware of motorists turning left. They’re often more intent on finding a gap in traffic than watching for pedestrians, and their view of the crosswalk may be blocked by the vehicle frame.

Of all his face-offs as a pedestrian, Bill McQuilken most vividly remembers the dump truck. McQuilken, trauma prevention coordinator at Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network, was halfway across a clearly marked crosswalk, but the onrushing truck “wasn’t going to stop even though I had the right of way,” he says. “I yielded, and he whizzed right past the front of my legs.” To the driver’s dismay, police officers waiting down the street pulled him over.

McQuilken was crossing busy streets for a pedestrian safety study by the hospital and the Bethlehem police department and health bureau. “A lot of motorists screamed at me in crosswalks for—according to them—being in their way,” McQuilken says. “There were so many violations the police couldn’t keep up.”

Clearly, pedestrian safety is a major concern locally. Last year the hospital treated 101 pedestrian injuries, most often to the head and neck. They’re the sixth most common type of trauma for both adults and children. Research shows that pedestrian-vehicle crashes are more often fatal in the Lehigh Valley than elsewhere in Pennsylvania, and that motorists are more aggressive toward pedestrians here than in other parts of the country.

Most victims are struck while crossing a lane of traffic. Impatience and poor judgment on both sides often contribute. “Pedestrians think, ‘I can make it—he sees me and he’ll stop,’” says Frank Barron, public works traffic coordinator for the City of Bethlehem. “But motorists often don’t see you or aren’t willing to yield.”

To keep your family safe on streets, especially as children venture out for Halloween, follow the guidelines to the right.

Want to Know More? The most dangerous intersections combine high traffic volume, dense population and businesses. For a list of Lehigh Valley intersections with high rates of pedestrian injuries, call 610-402- CARE or click here.

Special thanks to Tom Edinger, transportation planner for the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission.

Published from Healthy You Magazine, September-October 2008

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