Home › Forums › Open Discussion › Dark, rainy weather and pedestrians with a death wish
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December 19, 2012 at 10:01 pm #605964
MagpieParticipantIn the last 3 days, we have almost hit 3 pedestrians early in the morning. Each of these was wearing all black and no where hear a street light. For example, this morning a woman walked in to Oregon in the middle of a line of cars going about 30 mph. She actually put her arm up to stop traffic. Yes, she had the right of way, but the only reason we saw her was that she was caucasian and her hand glowed.
Monday morning we almost hit a kid who ran out between 2 cars in the middle of the street because his bus was at the end of the block on the other side of the street. He also was wearing all black.
As a life long pedestrian, I know that drivers can’t always see me. If it is dark, I don’t have the need to be right. I let the cars pass or wait for them to stop. I also carry a light umbrella and wear a bright coat. Please people, when you are walking your dog, jogging etc in the dark, please wear light clothing or something with reflectors. Same thing if your kids are going to be out on the streets when it is dark. We are very careful, but these close calls really unnerved me. We truly could not see any of the pedestrians until it was almost too late.
December 19, 2012 at 10:27 pm #780102
cakeitseasyMemberYes, it’s *very* difficult to see pedestrians in dark, stormy weather.
It’s foolhardy to think that because you have the right of way as a pedestrian, that someone in a vehicle can see you and stop on a dime. Ditto for bikes. If you are in street in the dark, don’t forget to wear or cary something reflective! Having to slam on the brakes can cause a chain reaction accident.
December 19, 2012 at 10:41 pm #780103
DBPMember>>In the last 3 days, we have almost hit 3 pedestrians early in the morning.
–Try again when the light is better.
December 19, 2012 at 11:28 pm #780104
hammerheadParticipantAgreed it has been very tough to see people when driving also people just don’t look. The ones with headphones are just asking for it.
DBP, I know I should not laugh but that was a good one.
HH
December 19, 2012 at 11:49 pm #780105
MBParticipantAgreed on the pedestrians. But you know what’s been driving me nuts the last few weeks? All the people driving around at dusk or in the pouring down rain with NO HEADLIGHTS on!! I don’t get it! It’s not Summer and yes, it is in fact almost dark at 4:30pm this time of year. It is very hard to see your gray car against the gray street and gray sky. I know we all forget to click them on from time to time, but I’ve had to flash 2-3 cars every evening on my way home lately, sometimes more. I don’t know why it seems that there are more of them than usual this year. I mean, it’s 3:45pm right now and already getting dark. What’s the deal people? Turn your friggin lights on for your own safety and the safety of everyone else!!!
December 19, 2012 at 11:49 pm #780106
Genesee HillParticipantWhen I am driving, I make darn sure there are no pedestrians in front of me to hit. Yeah, it takes extra vigilance. Yes, it takes extra care going around neighborhood street corners. You bet it means stopping at stop signs. Yes, it means not chatting away on a cell phone. And, yes, it means not driving under the influence.
If you hit a pedestrian in a marked or un-marked crosswalk you will pay.
December 19, 2012 at 11:56 pm #780107
westcoastdebParticipantMB:
I agree. Or one headlight out drivers. The best I have seen in a while was the primered black pickup on 599 in the rain at 5:15 with no lights on at all.
Guess what was invisible from any other perspective than noticing SOMETHING was obstructing the lights of other vehicles?
The big black pickup.
December 20, 2012 at 12:01 am #780108
MBParticipantSounds to me like the OP was paying attention (no thanks to the peds in question) and that’s why they weren’t hit. I think the point he/she was trying to make is that even when you are completely focused and being vigilant, there are still people who almost seem to go out of their way to be practically invisible in dark clothes on dark streets, darting randomly out into traffic. Just because you are not driving doesn’t mean you don’t have some level of personal responsibility to cross streets safely. It’s a group effort to keep the roads safe and we all need to get a clue, whatever our mode of transportation.
December 20, 2012 at 12:08 am #780109
MBParticipant@wcd, I feel like I could have quite possibly seen the same truck leaving ws the other evening. Beware, same one or not, there is a lightless black truck waiting for an accident in our neck of the woods too! There have been so many lately that I can’t believe they all simply forgot. Are people boycotting headlights or something?? :)
December 20, 2012 at 12:20 am #780110
WSratsinacageMemberI’m glad common sense is not totally dead in WS. Nice to read reasonable comments above. I have commented similarly in the past and was “jumped” for doing so.
December 20, 2012 at 3:55 am #780111
dhgParticipantJust happened in the Alaska Junction: Because I saw other cars stopped in the oncoming lane, I stopped at the ped x-ing in the middle of the block. Had there not been traffic in the oncoming lane, i might not have seen the guy because I could only see a “hole” in the glare of the lights on the street where he stood. Reflective clothing would be a great holiday present! Closest I’ve come to hitting someone was on a night like tonight, low speed, on cap hill, the guy was dressed all in black and sheltering his face with a black umbrella. He was invisible until he slapped my car.
December 20, 2012 at 5:46 am #780112
RoomWithAViewMember“Death wish”? Time to quit driving with that sociopathic attitude. Also sounds like a lot of you are driving too fast for conditions and not paying enough attention. Doing this habitually while blaming others for your shortcomings is clear evidence that you’re not qualified to operate a vehicle when there are other people around. Your hurry is not worth costing people’s safety.
December 20, 2012 at 5:55 am #780113
dhgParticipant
Sociopathic? Too fast? Um, no. Slow and careful and STILL pedestrians are hard to see. That is the point.
December 20, 2012 at 7:11 am #780114
CaitParticipantThere’s always gotta be one, doesn’t there…
December 20, 2012 at 5:06 pm #780115
MBParticipantThe older I get, the less I understand the logic of others. OP, I feel your pain and agree with you. There are terrible car drivers, bike riders AND pedestrians in the world. Amazing how I, being a sociopath and all, can wrap my mind around the fact that its not a one way street :) Happy Holidays to all the sociopathic drivers, bikers and peds alike! Be safe out there people!
December 20, 2012 at 5:37 pm #780116
RoomWithAViewMemberSay what you will, it’s attitudes like yours that are the reason 30,000+ Americans die from automobiles each year. Over 10x dead than on 9/11, annually, with no signs of slowing as long as people cling to the outdated 20th century car culture mindset.
Feel free to respond with the usual bullying and excuses.
December 20, 2012 at 5:56 pm #780117
DannyQMemberIt is understanding that the pedestrians don’t want to walk multiple blocks just to cross, and then chance missing their buses.
Maybe it’s time to put a petition out to get the button initiated flashing crosswalks put onto the street surface put on 35th so that we can start protecting those that will not change their ways for an inconvenience. Death is not worth any inconvenience, even if it’s in the losing end of the drivers.
I agree though, in the meantime, common sense needs to be used. I can’t say that I have crossed 35th illegally, although I am a daredevil, I’m not stupid.
December 20, 2012 at 6:22 pm #780118
MBParticipantBullying? Say what? Who’s the one calling names? Never had a ticket, never had an accident, perfect driving record, stop for people waiting to cross the street and get honked at by the road rangers that don’t like me doing that, but I’m a sociopath? Ok. Did you even read my prior posts. I’m not for one second saying that there aren’t terrible drivers. Many of them almost kill me daily. Sometimes I wonder why I even participate here at all. As I said before, Happy Holidays…even to those who like to come on here and, well, just act flat out mean and judgmental toward people they know nothing about. I’ll be sure to continue to stop even for you when I see you waiting to cross the street because THAT’S the kind of person I am (drops microphone and walks away).
December 20, 2012 at 6:33 pm #780119
56bricksParticipant“As a lifelong pedestrian” I don’t think the impact would be that serious if you ran into someone,(texting and cell phones while walking) but yeah, folks here are pretty nonchalant, having been run over myself (actually run under), while having the green light right of way and it still hurts 30 years later so just pay attention and be safe. By the way Room- invoke 9/11 for all your agendas. I’m sure our families appreciate your, whatever.
December 20, 2012 at 8:18 pm #780120
RoomWithAViewMemberI’m sure the families of the 430,000+ dead Americans from car fatalities in the last decade appreciate you thinking this is “my” agenda. Keep trying to not be part of the problem, maybe one day you’ll succeed.
December 20, 2012 at 9:20 pm #780121
FranciParticipantSo this isn’t WS but I was seriously annoyed by a cyclist going much faster downhill in the dark with no lights or reflective clothing evident near my office. I was going very slow ~ about 5 miles an hour, slowing to make a left turn into the parking lot, when my eyes caught a blur of movement. I couldn’t see anything specific in the pre-dawn light, just some vague movement, and I was able to stop and let the bicyclist pass before turning in. I was completely shaken up, because had I not been looking at the exact right place at the exact right time, I would have missed the ‘blur of movement’.
RWV – Do you really think that I’m the danger on the road, as I can totally relate to the OP. Cars, bikes, peds – all need to make themselves visible to one antoher.
In the above situation – if I hadn’t stopped – I would not have hit the cyclist, but they would likely have hit the side of my car. EVERYONE needs to use common sense.
December 20, 2012 at 10:40 pm #780122
56bricksParticipant@room, I neither own nor drive a car. And yes, you do have an agenda. I like the way you throw numbers around to fit that to suit yourself.
December 20, 2012 at 11:30 pm #780123
westcoastdebParticipantWow. This started as a ‘be careful people, it is easier to avoid you if I can see you’ thread
and now?
Car drivers are sociopaths.
Either way, people can chose to help protect themselves by making themselves seen
or
make sociopaths ANGRY because they do not have an excuse to run into people.
*eyeroll*
December 20, 2012 at 11:40 pm #780124
RoomWithAViewMember” The fact is, the vast majority of collisions between motor vehicles and people walking are the fault of the person driving. And when it comes to be inattention, distraction of people driving is far more likely to be a contributing circumstance to a collision than someone walking distracted.”
December 20, 2012 at 11:42 pm #780125
westcoastdebParticipantA lot of us are looking out for the people on foot by asking them to be visable. We have headlights on the cars to help us see, but an all black something in a black space just isn’t visable.
Common sense ain’t so common.
[If so, I would not be troll feeding]
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