Pedestrian Injuries 

Safety Tips For Pedestrian

Prevention is always the best protection against collisions. A key to preventing pedestrian injuries is to stay aware of vehicles around you. Put away that device and wait to text or use an app that distracts you while walking. While the law favors pedestrians and grants them the right of way, this does not mean pedestrians are never liable if they fail to exercise reasonably care for their own safety.

Walk on sidewalks

If sidewalks aren’t accessible, walk in the section of the road, such as the edge of the road or on the left shoulder of the road, and face the traffic flow. Use pedestrian bridges when they are available.

Take care when crossing

Crosswalks and mid-block crossings are the most common locations for pedestrian crashes. Use marked crosswalks and signalized intersections when available. Every intersection is a legal crosswalk under Washington law unless it is marked as closed or where it’s located between two signalized intersections you could cross at. In addition to intersections, driveways are another place where you can expect to encounter drivers or bicyclists exiting or entering. Take an extra moment to confirm that you can cross safely.

Look left, right, and left for traffic

Stop at the curb and look left, right, and left again for traffic. Stopping at the curb signals drivers that you intend to cross. Always obey traffic signals.

Stay as visible as possible

Think twice about walking in all dark clothes if the sun will set soon or you are likely going to walk in a poorly lit area. Drivers cannot always spot every figure when they are barely visible. Consider wearing something reflective and bright. Use a flashlight when walking in the dark. This will help you see large cracks in the sidewalk or shoulder and also make you visible to drivers nearby

Watch your children!

Don’t let small children cross streets by themselves, please. Don’t allow them to play or walk near roads. They don’t have the judgment and life’s experience to understand and gauge when a situation involves extra caution.

Intoxication and impairment

Whether one is impaired due to use of alcohol, drugs, or a medical condition, this puts everyone nearby at risk for a crash. When a pedestrian or driver does not have full use of all of their reflexes, cognitive skills, and/or motor skills, the chance of a serious accident multiplies.

Just because you are walking, don’t throw caution to the wind after a medical procedure or excessive use of an intoxicant. Take public transportation, a rideshare, or ask a friend drive you home.

Obey traffic signals

At intersections with traffic signals and/or controls, pedestrians must obey the signal and not cross against the stop signal unless specifically directed to go by a traffic officer.

Safety tips for drivers to save lives

Stop for people in crosswalks

Every intersection is a crosswalk –This is the law. Drivers must stop for pedestrians at intersections, whether it’s an unmarked or marked crosswalk, and bicyclists in crosswalks are considered pedestrians. Also, it is illegal to pass another vehicle stopped for someone at a crosswalk. In Washington, the leading action by motorists that results in them hitting someone is failure to yield to pedestrians.

Put away your phone!

Hand-held cell phone use and texting is prohibited for all Washington drivers and may result in a $136 fine for first offense, $235 on the second distracted-driving citation.

Look and then look again before turning

Most pedestrians and bicyclists are involved in crashes in Washington state when they are crossing the road. Stay extra vigilant for people walking or biking near senior centers, schools, community centers, shopping districts, and other destinations.

Pass at a safe distance

Leaving an extra safety buffer in time and space when passing people gives you more ability to see and react, and it’s also the law. Be aware that a bicyclist needs to be positioned in the lane a safe distance away from opening car doors, grates, and other hazards not visible to a driver. Drivers need to move into the other lane when possible or leave at least three feet while passing (RCW 46.61.110). Darkness and weather conditions may affect a driver’s ability to gauge distance.

Drive the posted speed limit, or slower

If a driver hits a pedestrian or bicyclist at 20 mph or less, there is an estimated 95 percent survival rate; at 30 mph, a pedestrian has only a 5 percent chance of walking away without injury and the death rate jumps to 45 percent. (The driver trying to save

Sample Cases

• Kolomiets v. City of Seattle and King County – Seattle, WA – In litigation. A young woman was lawfully walking, using a marked crosswalk, when a bicyclist crashed into her at approximately 15 – 20 mph. She lost consciousness after her body hit the ground face first. Fleming Law with co-counsel have filed suit for negligent road design and negligent bicycling. Details here.
• Confidential v. The Progressive Insurance – Whidbey Island, WA – $475,000 settlement for a 49 year old lady, who was walking to the transit stop at 5:45 AM for her regular commute to work. Although she did not use the marked crosswalk and wore dark clothes, the driver who hit her should have yielded and driven at the 10 mph speed limit in the park and ride area.
• Confidential v. Safeco – Seattle, WA – $892,500 confidential settlement for an injured Google employee, who was walking back from a lunch appointment in the Fremont neighborhood, when a commercial van driver made a right turn into him at the marked crosswalk. Although fully recovered, the Fleming Law client was forced to take a week off from work and cancel a long anticipated trip with his family to visit his grandparents in New England. By the time he was recovered enough to travel, his grandmother had passed away.