Pedestrian crashes can occur anywhere motor vehicles share space with people on foot. Pedestrians sometimes become overconfident because they know the law and understand when they have the right of way. They can then end up seriously hurt in crashes caused by drivers who didn’t properly monitor their surroundings.
Pedestrian crashes can occur when people jog on rural roads or walk to the post office in their own neighborhoods. There are certain locations where pedestrian crashes are more likely to occur due to the density of pedestrians and the conduct of motorists.
Where do pedestrians need to pay extra close attention for their own safety?
In parking lots
Drivers should know that parking lots are particularly dangerous because of all the people heading to the store from their vehicles or back to their vehicles with their purchases. Unfortunately, research into driver behavior indicates that the opposite is true. Motorists are more likely to engage in distracted driving in parking lots because they have a false sense of safety. Pedestrians are therefore at more risk in parking lots now than they were a few years ago.
At the end of driveways
In theory, drivers should always watch carefully for pedestrians before backing out into traffic. In practice, people tend to be the least safe when they are closest to home. They may quickly look around for vehicles and not mentally think about pedestrians at all. Especially when drivers have larger vehicles, like SUVs, it can be surprisingly easy for them to overlook pedestrians as they back out of their own driveways. Any place the sidewalk crosses a driveway is a dangerous location for pedestrians.
At busy intersections
Technically, traffic lights indicate when pedestrians should cross at intersections with marked crosswalks. Drivers generally need to yield to pedestrians who have the right of way. Unfortunately, many of them fail to watch for pedestrians, especially if traffic has prevented them from turning left for most of the traffic light cycle. Motorists may rush into an intersection when they think they have the right to turn, only to end up striking pedestrians crossing in accordance with traffic lights.
Injured pedestrians affected by motor vehicle collisions often need help pursuing compensation. Negotiating with insurance or filing a lawsuit alone can be a difficult undertaking for those with the major injuries often generated by pedestrian crashes.