Posts tagged "pedestrian accidents"

Earlier this year a teenage driver lost control and killed a father and daughter in a town just east of San Francisco. This weekend saw a similar pedestrian accident in nearby Walnut Creek. A pickup truck drove onto the sidewalk and smashed into a group of four pedestrians, killing a 52-year-old mother and severely injuring her daughter-in-law.

The accident occurred shortly after 6:00 p.m. last Saturday night. The victim, a math teacher from Santa Barbara, was in Walnut Creek to visit her son and his new wife. The family was walking along a downtown sidewalk when the driver of a pickup truck crashed into them at high speed.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has been on a mission to end the epidemic of distracted driving. Part of the campaign to do this is by sharing the stories of people who have lost loved ones to car accidents caused by a distracted driver. A story highlighted this week on the DOT's blog was that of a father who lost his 2-year-old daughter to a distracted driver in a pedestrian accident in California.

The little girl was returning home from the park with her mother in December 2010. As the girl and her mother crossed the street hand-in-hand, they were struck by a young driver who was texting while driving and didn't see the mother and daughter in the street. She plowed into them. The little girl died and her mother was critically injured.

As discussed in the previous post, the presence of hybrid cars is increasing on America's roadways. People may be trying to spend less money on gas or to do their part to contribute to a greener society or both, but an unintended consequence of these hybrids is that they pose a danger to pedestrians, especially blind people who rely on the noise cars make to avoid being hit. Hybrids operate mostly on electricity when moving at slower speeds and so they operate quietly.

Currently, HEVs are only a small percentage of cars on the road, but that number is likely to grow significantly in the coming years. In addition to popular hybrid models like the Toyota Prius and the Ford Escape, several automakers have produced all-electric cars such as the Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Volt. In 2012, Ford, Toyota, Honda and Mitsubishi intend to produce all-electric car models. With more HEVs on the road, the problems associated with quiet cars are likely to increase.

Most would agree that the move toward greener and more fuel-efficient cars is good for all involved, including the auto industry, the consumer and the environment. However, studies show that the increased use of hybrid and electric cars is leading to one negative result - an increase in pedestrians injured by these silent cars.

When driven at lower speeds, hybrid and electric cars operate primarily on electricity and are virtually silent. Without the noise of an engine, pedestrians and cyclists fail to hear hybrid or electric cars and do not realize that the cars are approaching them.

According to a study conducted by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, pedestrians and cyclists are more likely to be injured by hybrid electric vehicles, or HEVs, when these vehicles are slowing down, making turns, backing up or entering or leaving a parking space. When HEVS are driving straight ahead, the pedestrian and cyclist accident statistics are similar to those of regular cars.

When kids think of frightening occurrences that could happen on Halloween, a pedestrian accident may not be the first thing that comes to mind. Being hit by a car, however, is a real danger on October 31, the most deadly night for pedestrians, according to AAA.

Motorists should use extra caution on Halloween and parents should accompany their kids trick-or-treating or at least remind them of traffic safety rules. AAA says that it is safer for kids to wear non-toxic face paint rather than masks because the paint is less likely to obstruct kids' vision when navigating neighborhoods. Kids should also carry a flashlight with extra batteries and wear strips of reflective tape or a reflective vest in order to be better seen by cars.

Earlier this month, a 23-year-old woman was killed when she was struck by a bus. The Muni bus accident occurred just before three in the afternoon in San Francisco as the woman was crossing the street in the crosswalk.

At the time of the accident, residents of the Castro neighborhood commented that they rarely if ever saw buses turn onto Hartford Street where the pedestrian was killed. The policy of the transit agency is to provide specific direction to a bus driver who is driving to a new route. The driver in this case was not provided instructions to reach his new route.

One of the wonderful benefits of living in California is the ability to spend time outside enjoying the weather, doing things like bicycling and walking. Unfortunately, however, these activities can be dangerous when it comes to sharing the road with each other and other vehicles.

Bicycle and pedestrian safety is necessary for everyone to be able to get to where they are going safely. Bicycle and pedestrian accidents are a serious risk whenever motor vehicles run stop signs or speed, or when there is too much traffic. Pedestrians are also at risk when bicycles do not follow traffic signals and ride too fast or out of control.

In San Jose and the rest of the Bay Area, pedestrian accidents are all too common. We have a very high population density in this area, and pedestrians and vehicles are often in close quarters with each other. Unfortunately, when pedestrians are involved in an accident with a vehicle, pedestrians are especially vulnerable to serious and catastrophic injuries.

At about 2:45 a.m. last Wednesday, there was a fatal accident involving a 63-year-old pedestrian and a Honda Civic. The accident occurred on Highway 101 in Palo Alto, California, just north of Oregon Expressway.