Asking For It

Today while going only a few blocks in my community, a busy one, but still, I saw a number of driving mismanagements that were "asking for it". An elderly person with obvious walking difficulties chose to cross a six-lane highway instead of going a half a block further to where the light was. She stood and waited until what she thought would be a safe crossing and then haltingly expected the cars to let her pass. It's never safe to cross in the middle of the block. There were other driveways entering the road space that might not easily see her or would be expecting that someone would cross illegally or perhaps the drivers were looking other ways while entering the road. I saw in my rear view mirror that the slow walking woman barely got across before a stream of cars came along. Now, that sort of accident when pedestrians are struck happens all too frequently in this area and sadly is reported in the newspapers weekly. It isn't always cars that are at fault. This kind of mid-block crosser individual is asking for an accident to happen. As a driver, I try to be alert for pedestrians and cyclists and other drivers but I also expect them to respect the road rules and be safe, too. The next thing I encountered on the same trip to town, was at a corner where the light turned green and yet pedestrians continued to enter the crosswalk well after their signal for crossing went off. What? A line of cars having the legal right to turn on a green light was forced to wait until all of these illegal crossers got safely onto the sidewalk. It took some time before the crosswalk emptied. We are all in a hurry to get where we are going but nothing is more important than human life. A few seconds to wait for a safe pedestrian crossing could prevent a serious accident or maiming. Or going a little further down the sidewalk to a crosswalk where drivers expect you to be, might save someone a lot of grief. And it isn't just the victims but also the innocent drivers who suffer. At night, a number of times while driving, I have been surprised by someone all in dark clothing dashing across the road in front of my car. While they may feel safe doing so because they can see clearly, I can't stop my car on a dime and it is difficult while in a car at night, to see anyone dressed in dark clothing crossing or walking close to the roadside. If you value your life, do not take chances on it. You are no match for a few thousand pounds of metal going kilometers down the road.
 Don't "ask for it". Be careful pedestrians. I drive safely, please do your part.