How to stay alive on our roads?

According to WHO, more than 1,2 million people die each year as a result of traffic accidents in the world, and 20-50 million are injured. Half of those killed in accidents are pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists. ^[1]. During 2019, more than 164 road accidents occurred on Russian roads, in which more than 210 people were injured and almost 15 people died ^[2]. But many of these deaths and injuries could have been avoided if pedestrians had been aware of the so-called blind spots on highways and exercised increased vigilance.

Traffic lights and “zebra” – not always a guarantee of safety

Many pedestrians are sure that as soon as they take the first step on the zebra, cars should immediately give them way. According to traffic rules – yes. But not everything is so clear. It must be understood that a vehicle needs a certain amount of time and road to stop completely. You can’t rush to the crossing a meter before the approaching car and believe that the driver will have time to slow down. Even if the vehicle is moving at a speed of 40 km/h, it needs at least 5-10 m to come to a complete stop. At higher speeds or adverse road conditions, the stopping distance can be several times longer.

In addition, do not forget that among the road users there have always been many reckless drivers who do not care about the red light of a traffic light or a zebra. It’s better for them to just give way, saving their health, and sometimes life. Therefore, before crossing the road, the pedestrian must stop and assess the situation.

The most dangerous traps on the roads

It is widely believed that the biggest risk for a pedestrian is running across a highway at a red light. But paradoxically, situations that at first glance are perceived as safe are often no less a threat. We are talking about the so-called traps or blind (dead) zones on the road. Usually, accidents happen in such places, not because the driver basically did not want to let the pedestrian pass, but because he simply did not see him.

Zebras on multi-lane highways

This is one of the most treacherous places on the track. When a pedestrian enters the “zebra”, the driver of a car moving along the lane at the extreme sidewalk, observing the traffic rules, stops. But road users in other lanes may not replace this “colleague” maneuver and continue driving at full speed on what they see as a free lane. At the same time, a pedestrian can move quickly along the crossing, not realizing that drivers of lines located closer to the middle of the highway simply do not see him because of other cars. The result is a situation where a pedestrian seems to appear in front of the car from nowhere, and it is too late to slow down.

How to do it right? Drivers should monitor the maneuvers of cars in other lanes and, noticing the braking of the “neighbors”, do the same. A pedestrian, moving to the next lane of the highway, is obliged to stop and assess the situation on it, and only then continue to move.

Large cars in front of a pedestrian crossing

The line of sight for drivers of large vehicles is much less than from a compact passenger car. Having stopped in front of the zebra crossing, letting other road users pass, the driver of the truck cannot see what is happening right under his wheels. That is why the transition of the road into a tight one to a large car or diagonally (thus falling into a blind zone) poses a mortal threat to pedestrians. As a result, a truck driver, seeing an empty road, can resume movement, injuring a pedestrian who is out of line of sight.

How to do it right? Drivers of large cars should stop at a safe distance from the crossing, and pedestrians are strictly forbidden to cross the road close to such cars – only at a distance from where the driver will see them, and only strictly perpendicular to the line of the route.

Traffic jams in one direction

Another typical situation, which at first glance seems quite safe, but nevertheless poses a serious threat to the pedestrian – one lane is in a traffic jam, and the second lane of the road is free. Cars standing in traffic block the view of the highway for the pedestrian, as a result, he sees only part of the route – in front of him. The risk of the situation is that the driver of the second lane may also not see a person getting out among cars standing in a traffic jam and, as a result, not have time to slow down in time. At the same time, the biggest threat to pedestrians is posed by cars moving not in a stream, but alone – their appearance is the most difficult to predict.

How to do it right? Drivers should be able to recognize these kinds of traps on the highway in advance and always slow down in front of the zebra crossing. Pedestrians, leaving the traffic jam to the oncoming lane, must first look out from behind the cars and assess the situation. And even more so, you should never cross the highway, even if the cars are in traffic, in places not intended for this, where the driver cannot predict the appearance of a pedestrian and react accordingly.

Why can’t you cross the road?

The idea that it is safer to cross the road instead of slowly crossing is fundamentally wrong. Running across highways, including zebra crossings, is extremely dangerous, especially if traffic is not regulated by traffic lights. The fact is that, moving slowly along the roadway, a pedestrian is more likely to notice an approaching car with peripheral vision and stop in time. At the same time, the driver, having noticed a person on the track, also has time to react in accordance with the situation.

How to do it right? Never run out onto the roadway and do not run along the “zebra”, even if the car is not visible in the field of view.

Distractions: What further increases the risk for a pedestrian

In order not to endanger themselves on the road, a pedestrian must comply with traffic rules, as well as carefully monitor road signs, markings and everything that happens on the roadway. But very often participants in the movement ignore this rule, being distracted by various factors.

Among the most common distractions that prevent a pedestrian from being as attentive as possible on the road, experts name:

• phone calls;
• listening to music through headphones;
• checking social networks and writing messages;
• viewing ads;
• reading on the go
• trying to find something in the bag while continuing to walk along the road;
• too enthusiastic conversations with fellow travelers;
• eating on the go
• shifting eyes from the road to the watch or phone ^[3].

Scientific studies have shown that distractions, especially the use of mobile phones while driving, make people less attentive and therefore more at risk of being a victim of an accident.

To summarize the above, the main rule of a pedestrian is never to become a surprise for the driver. In order for the driver to react adequately, he must see the pedestrian from afar. A person who suddenly appears on the roadway does not give time to himself or the driver to correct the mistake and avoid an accident.

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