How Pedestrian Awareness Is A Key To Optimum Street Safety
With Halloween right around the corner, this is a pretty important time to discuss the vital importance of street safety. As per usual, the evening of October 31st will find a lot of young ones crossing streets in search of candy from neighbouring homes. The annual act of trick or treating is generally a pretty fun one. But it can be disastrous if both drivers and pedestrians are not doing their due diligence to keep safe.
As recently reported by Kamil Karamali of CTV National News, distracted driving is up more than 40 percent compared to this time last year. Based on information provided by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), the report reveals that the province’s highways have seen a total of 296 fatal crashes so far this year. “63 people were killed in collisions where inattentiveness was the main cause,” informs Karamali.
What can pedestrians do to ensure that they are safe on the street?
Maintain eye contact with drivers when crossing the road.
It’s not enough to simply see the cars that are approaching. As you cross the street, put efforts into locking eyes with the drivers. It’s the only way to know if they see you or not. It’s a simple action that has huge implications. When you ensure that a driver has seen you, you can ensure that he or she will stop or slow down. This is particularly important at busy intersections or areas with dim lighting.
“Make eye contact with drivers,” advises the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, “Keep your head up and look where you’re walking. Never assume that drivers see you.”
Avoid the use of technology and always be attentive.
We’re all so used to being glued to our phones, aren’t we? Whether it’s the messaging apps, social media feeds or vast array of videos to watch, the media on our phones can be incredibly distracting. Although it should go without saying, refrain from using your gadgets while crossing the street. Even the simple acts of texting or scrolling through your music playlists can limit your awareness of what is going on around you.
“According to the research, texting or talking on the phone puts pedestrians at a 45 per cent higher risk of near misses and more severe traffic conflict outcomes,” reports Denise Ryan in a recent Vancouver Sun article.
Jay Olsen is a professor of psychology at the University of Toronto Mississauga. In Karamali’s report, Olsen conveys the importance of drivers focusing on the roads and not their phones. “When people change their attention to something else, there’s something called a ‘switch cost,’” he is quoted as saying, “So changing your attention to do another task and change it back, it slows this kind of switch. So if something unexpected happens on the road, your reaction time is slower to reengage your attention.”
Mind the little ones.
The old adages “Look both ways before crossing the road” and “Hold hands while crossing the street” should always be adhered to. It should go without saying that practicing street safety with young children is a vital way to keep them free from harm.
As we’ve always made abundantly clear, the SOS 4 Kids team is a huge proponent of child safety. This is why our Babysitter’s Course teaches how to supervise young children in a safe and responsible manner. The course is designed for children aged 11 to 15. To learn all about it, please don’t hesitate to give us a call at 1-844-373-1024. You may also email us at [email protected] or fill out the form on our Contact page!
