Nothing is more precious than your child’s safety. Over the course of my career as a personal injury attorney, some of the most heart- wrenching cases I have seen have been those involving children who were victims of pedestrian accidents. In this chapter, I’d like to take a look at why children are particularly vulnerable to pedestrian accidents and what you can do as a parent and a driver to prevent these tragic accidents.
Why are child pedestrians at risk?
Pedestrian injury is the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death among children ages 5 to 14, claiming the lives of about 600 children annually, according to a recent report. This same report also indicated that more than 38,400 children were treated in emergency rooms for pedestrian-related injuries. Although pedestrian injuries are not as common as motor vehicle occupant injuries, a disproportionate number of the injuries sustained by child pedestrians are severe.
External circumstances can increase the chances of child pedestrian accidents, but more often it is their innocence that makes them vulnerable to dangers on the road. Child pedestrians can be killed for a variety of reasons, including high traffic volume, high posted speed limits, absence of a divided highway, few pedestrian control devices, lack of alternative play areas like parks and irresponsible driver behavior. However, children are particularly at-risk pedestrians because they are exposed to traffic threats that exceed their cognitive, developmental, behavioral, physical and sensory abilities. This is exacerbated by the fact that parents often overestimate their children’s pedestrian skills. Take a look at some of the reasons why children under age 10 are unsafe, at-risk pedestrians:
- They often “dart out” into traffic, perhaps chasing after a toy or a pet.
- They may believe that if they can see the driver, the driver can see them.
- They may believe a green light means it is always safe to cross.
- They may believe drivers will always stop if they are at a crosswalk.
- They may believe cars can stop quickly.
- They often cannot accurately tell which direction sound is coming from.
- Their peripheral vision is significantly less than that of an adult.
- They may not be able to tell how fast a car is traveling or how far away it is.
Children simply do not have the cognitive abilities to be safe pedestrians. Both parents and drivers should be educated about the most common types of accidents, how to prevent them as both a pedestrian and a driver, how to teach children to be safe and how to improve pedestrian safety in their communities.
What are the most common types of child pedestrian accidents?
Though we call them “accidents,” there are some noticeable patterns to when, where and how child pedestrian accidents occur. Urban areas have twice the rate of traffic-related pedestrian deaths as rural areas. Children are most likely to be involved in pedestrian accidents when walking on straight, paved, dry roads in urban or residential areas. Accidents are also most likely to happen between the hours of 4pm and 8pm, when children are traveling from school and playing in residential areas. It was recently calculated that 43 percent of fatal child pedestrian accidents occurred between these dangerous hours.
In addition to being aware of the riskiest times and places for child pedestrians, you can also reduce the risk of accidents by becoming familiar with the most common types of collisions, which are explained below.
Child darts out
In the last chapter, I mentioned the common example of a child chasing a stray ball into the street, which is certainly one reason why a child might dart into traffic. In many cases, however, children have not been educated on how to properly cross the street. A recent study in San Diego indicated that 90 percent of children ages 5 to 12 did not know how to safely cross the street. As a driver, you should be aware that this type of crash happens both at intersections and mid- block, and you must be on the lookout for children entering the road, even at non-intersection locations. Statistics show that over 80 percent of children who died in pedestrian accidents were killed at non-intersection locations.
Vehicle turns into the path of a child
A child may assume that a green light or a WALK signal means that it’s safe to cross, but a driver turning may not look for a pedestrian or might not see the child crossing.
Child hidden from view by an ice cream truck
Sadly, a child’s excitement about getting an ice cream treat may make them unaware of the surrounding traffics, and a large truck might block them from view before they step into the street. Exercise caution when passing ice cream trucks—you might even want to come to a full stop.
Child is hidden from view by bus and driver does not stop
Think back to when you were a kid, and how excited you were for school to let out at the end of the day. Did you pay any attention to the traffic around your school bus? Children exiting a school bus are distracted, and the large bus not only obstructs the exiting children from the view of drivers on the road, but also can block the road, making some drivers impatient—and potentially dangerous.
Children may exit the school bus and step into the street, all the while they are blocked from view by the school bus. That is why every state in the U.S. requires traffic in both directions to stop on undivided highways when students are getting on or off a school bus.
Vehicle backing up in roadways, driveways or parking lots
While some “backover” accidents are caused by careless drivers, often young children are just too small or quick to be seen by even the most careful driver. In addition to teaching children to look for people in the driver’s seat of cars in driveways, and for illuminated reverse lights before crossing a driveway, parents should never allow young children to play in their own driveways or around parked cars.
What can I do to increase safety for child pedestrians?
Teach your children how to be safe pedestrians
Although teaching children how to be a safe pedestrian might not prevent every accident, you can teach your children to protect themselves and exercise caution. Children should learn about street safety as soon as they are able to walk outdoors. Here’s how you can teach children street safety at all ages:
- Supervise them at all times. Preschoolers should never be allowed to cross the street alone, and you should always hold their hand while crossing the street.
- Teach by explaining. Explain what you are doing as you do it. For example, if you are crossing the street together, you should say, “When I cross the street, I always stop at the curb. Then I look and listen for cars. First I look left, then right, then left again. If it’s clear, then I can cross, while I keep looking for cars.” If your child can’t tell the difference between left and right, you can say “this way” and “that way.” You can also point out others who are exhibiting safe or unsafe behaviors (quietly, of course).
- Teach by example. Your behavior should be an example for your children. They are watching you to show them how to do the right thing.
- Praise them. Encourage safe behavior by praising them for copying your actions or words.
Children ages 5-10
- Accompany them. Young children should have an adult or older child with them every day until they show they can safely cross the street. Don’t overestimate their abilities.
- Make sure they follow these rules when crossing the street:
STOP at a curb or the edge of the road, and only at a corner or intersection.
LOOK left-right-left for moving cars.
WALK, don’t run, when road is clear or all cars have come to a stop.
STAY ALERT and keep looking for cars as you cross.
- Remind them to use their eyes and ears at all times. Child pedestrians can be at risk not only when crossing the street, but whenever they are near a street. Remind them that cars that appear to be parked may not always be parked, and to exercise caution when walking near driveways and parked cars.
- Teach them to obey all traffic markers. In addition to learning to cross at a WALK signal, children should learn to check for traffic, even if there is a green light or WALK signal.
Children ages 10 and up
- Choose their route to school. Walk to school together to find the most direct, safest route to school. When walking alone, they should follow that route and never use shortcuts.
- Make sure they use the sidewalk. If there is no sidewalk along their route, then they should keep to the left and walk facing oncoming traffic so they can see cars coming.
- Make sure they are visible. Many jackets and backpacks come with reflective materials built-in. You can also add reflective tape to any article of clothing, which is available at hardware or fabric stores.
Encourage “walkability” in your community
In the ten years between 1990-2000, there was a 49 percent decline in the rate of traffic-related pedestrian deaths in children ages 14 and younger. The decline can be attributed to decreased exposure to traffic, educational programs, increased law enforcement and efforts to improve pedestrian environments. Unfortunately, some of the decline may be because children are simply not walking as frequently. According to the SAFE KIDS organization, nearly half of all elementary school children walked or biked to school in 1969. But by 1995, only 10 percent of children walked or biked to school.
Walking is a no-cost mode of transportation which gets children to exercise, improves air quality by reducing vehicle emissions and allows parents and children to spend time together, free from the distractions of driving. You can help make your community a place that allows children to walk to school and other activities—safely and free from danger.
Teaching children how to safely cross the street is not enough. The National SAFE KIDS Campaign collected over 9,000 “walkability checks” across the country. The study showed that nearly 60 percent of parents and children found at least one serious hazard on their routes to school. Frequent hazards included a lack of sidewalk or crosswalk, wide roads, complicated traffic conditions, improper parking and speeding drivers. You and your community can help kids avoid these hazardous conditions by creating safe walking environments.
Here’s what you can do:
- Promote driver awareness about safe behaviors, traffic laws and penalties for violations through media campaigns, brochures and public service announcements.
- Encourage parents to walk or bike with their children to school, and also to walk or bike to work, to ease traffic congestion.
- You can create programs such as “walking school buses,” which provide adult supervision along routes child pedestrians take to school.
- Develop programs that encourage more walking and less driving, such as creating a school-wide “Walk-to-School” day.
- Contact your local law enforcement department about increasing traffic enforcement around your child’s school, community center or other facility where you notice hazards.
General safe driving tips are covered in the “Dos and Don’ts” chapter at the beginning of Part I . Let’s take a quick look at some safe driving tips that can help prevent child pedestrian accidents specifically.
Come to a complete stop at stop signs.
Children are told to wait until cars have stopped completely before they step into the road. Make it easy for them to know when to cross—always stop fully and completely at stop signs, and before the crosswalk.
Obey the speed limit in school zones.
A National SAFE KIDS Campaign study found that two-thirds of drivers exceeded the posted speed limit in school zones during the half-hour periods before and after school. In addition, one-third of drivers were traveling at a speed of 30 mph or more. This is bad news for child pedestrians. The likelihood of a pedestrian being killed if struck by a vehicle traveling 20 mph or less is about 5 percent, whereas the likelihood of death increases to 40 percent if the vehicle is traveling 30 mph or more. Prevent tragedies by driving within the posted speed limits.
Know your blind spots.
Larger vehicles such as trucks, vans and SUVs can make it difficult to see small children. Be aware of your blind spots at all times, particularly when turning or backing up. At home, you should also trim any hedges or landscaping in your driveway or yard that might block your view or the view of other drivers.
I would do just about anything to protect my children, and I know all parents feel the same way. In an ideal world, children would be able to walk to school and play in their neighborhoods without exposure to danger, but the truth is that cars are dangerous machines, and people make mistakes. My hope is that awareness of this information can prevent accidents before they happen.
If you or someone you care about has been in an accident, we’re here to talk.
Contact us today for a free consultation.