Comments on: Blaming the Pedestrian, Again http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/11/19/blaming-the-pedestrian-again/ Covering the New York City Streets Renaissance Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:07:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Spokker http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/11/19/blaming-the-pedestrian-again/comment-page-1/#comment-159671 Spokker Fri, 20 Nov 2009 07:20:01 +0000 http://www.streetsblog.org/?p=95731#comment-159671 ""Police: Crosswalks don't guarantee safety" http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/318182.php" I saw nothing wrong with the article. The article pointed out both kinds of cases in which the motorist was at fault and ones where the pedestrian is at fault. The moral of the story is that pedestrians have responsibilities as well as drivers. They also outlined rules for motorists in the sidebar. “”Police: Crosswalks don’t guarantee safety”
http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/318182.php“

I saw nothing wrong with the article. The article pointed out both kinds of cases in which the motorist was at fault and ones where the pedestrian is at fault. The moral of the story is that pedestrians have responsibilities as well as drivers. They also outlined rules for motorists in the sidebar.

]]> By: drewo http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/11/19/blaming-the-pedestrian-again/comment-page-1/#comment-159291 drewo Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:58:31 +0000 http://www.streetsblog.org/?p=95731#comment-159291 Article with a similar theme in today's Arizona (Tucson) Star: "Police: Crosswalks don't guarantee safety" http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/318182.php Some, uh, lowlights: /Each of the recent incidents [6 people, including 3 children] have occurred in crosswalks, police said. But just because someone is in a crosswalk doesn't mean it's safe — or even legal — to cross. "Yes. The pedestrian has the right of way, but it doesn't make the driver wrong if someone runs out in front of them," Lopez said./ Article with a similar theme in today’s Arizona (Tucson) Star:

“Police: Crosswalks don’t guarantee safety”
http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/318182.php

Some, uh, lowlights:
/Each of the recent incidents [6 people, including 3 children] have occurred in crosswalks, police said. But just because someone is in a crosswalk doesn’t mean it’s safe — or even legal — to cross.
“Yes. The pedestrian has the right of way, but it doesn’t make the driver wrong if someone runs out in front of them,” Lopez said./

]]> By: Urbanis http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/11/19/blaming-the-pedestrian-again/comment-page-1/#comment-159151 Urbanis Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:27:03 +0000 http://www.streetsblog.org/?p=95731#comment-159151 I think the reason why a windshield perspective prevails almost universally is that in this country, sprawl and lack of high-quality mass transit means that life without a car can severely restrict your access to workplaces, retail, and social opportunities and thus dramatically lower your quality of life. Even in transit-rich New York City, where the majority of residents are car-free, our 24-hour mass transit system is far from being the best that it could be in speed, frequency, coverage, and comfort, and we are all painfully aware of the thousand little sacrifices we make to use the system, especially late at night and on weekends. So, are we really surprised when the police, juries, and individuals reflexively diminish the driver's responsibility and blame the pedestrian (or bicyclist)? Because we all "have" to drive, and we drivers don't mean to hurt anyone, and any one of us could have been behind the wheel when this happened, and life without a car is simply...unthinkable. I think the reason why a windshield perspective prevails almost universally is that in this country, sprawl and lack of high-quality mass transit means that life without a car can severely restrict your access to workplaces, retail, and social opportunities and thus dramatically lower your quality of life. Even in transit-rich New York City, where the majority of residents are car-free, our 24-hour mass transit system is far from being the best that it could be in speed, frequency, coverage, and comfort, and we are all painfully aware of the thousand little sacrifices we make to use the system, especially late at night and on weekends. So, are we really surprised when the police, juries, and individuals reflexively diminish the driver’s responsibility and blame the pedestrian (or bicyclist)? Because we all “have” to drive, and we drivers don’t mean to hurt anyone, and any one of us could have been behind the wheel when this happened, and life without a car is simply…unthinkable.

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