San Francisco Injury Lawyer Blog
Over the past two weeks a few serious pedestrian accidents occurred at different intersections in San Francisco. The first occurred last week in Duboce Triangle. A 59-year-old man, was struck and fatally injured by an SUV as he was crossing the street in that area. He was resident of the mission district, was a regular in the neighborhood where he was fatally injured, and, according to his friends, he was a beloved member of that community. Police stated that the driver of the SUV was not cited and that he stopped after the crash and cooperated with investigators. Also last week, a mother was walking with two children southbound on Third Street at Williams Street at around 3:30pm. She had one child next to her and her five-year-old was following behind her as they crossed the street. As they were crossing private shuttle bus was driving eastbound on Williams Street and stuck the5-year-old boy as it turned right onto Third Street. He was taken to a hospital with life-threatening injuries. The shuttle bus had one passenger who was not injured and the driver of the bus cooperated with the investigation. And this week, a pedestrian suffered suffered injuries after being struck by a car near the Haight-Ashbury district. The accident happened around midnight at the intersection of Page and Divisadero streets. The pedestrian was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.
These accidents should be a reminder that of all the potential hazards to pedestrians, it is intersections that are riskiest of all. The major problem with intersections is that they are unanticipated or sudden requirement, and, in general, they are considered a necessary inconvenience by drivers. As a result drivers are not always patient and cautious when they reach them. What is more, most people feel intersections are an obstacle they feel forced to negotiate. Think about the psychology involved: Every person who arrives at an intersection is heading different directions with different purposes, and all trying to quickly get through on their way to their desired destination. For this reason, collisions regularly happen at intersections. So it is important for everyone who approaches an intersections become hyper vigilant, especially pedestrians. The following is a nice long list of tips for getting through intersections safely:
• Drivers need to remember that the law requires drivers to stop once someone has entered the crosswalk.
• A red light does not guarantee that vehicles will stop.
• drivers and pedestrians make eye contact with each other.
• Drivers should always yield to pedestrians at an intersection.
• When making a left turn, always yield the right-of-way to oncoming traffic.
• Leave enough space between your car and the one in front.
• Leave early, allowing extra travel time in case of delays.
• Remember: yellow lights mean stop unless it’s unsafe to do so.
• Look for-and expect to see-pedestrians, cyclists and motorcycles.
• Don’t make any sudden moves that might confuse another driver-or a cyclist or pedestrian.
• If you haven’t just seen the traffic light up ahead turn green, be ready to stop in case it changes to yellow.
• Always check your mirrors and look around. Slow down well in advance.
• Only go through a yellow light if it is unsafe to stop.
• Check the pedestrian signals-at most crosswalks the signal will change from a white figure to an red hand just before the light turns yellow, or will show how many seconds are left before the traffic light will change.
• Make sure you are always in the correct lane before a turn.
• Don’t change lanes in an intersection.
• Always use your turn signals well before you make a move, as it helps other drivers, cyclists and pedestrians know what you are doing.
• If you’re the first car to stop-make sure you remain behind the crosswalk.
• Ignore aggressive drivers-pay no attention if they’re honking their horns behind you.
If you or loved has been injured as pedestrian, please contact our office for a free consultation. Our personal injury attorney has more than 10 years experience helping victims of car accidents receive the compensation they deserve.