ADP

Hi all,

Well I came far too close to killing someone today in my car, and it made me think. It doesnt matter how carefull you are sometimes you just cant expect the unexpected, no matter how hard you look or slowly you drive.

The situation went -

School time, my parents house(I dont live there no )Im leaving it. Kids everywhere as they live 1 min from a school. I creap out of the junction mega slow, lots of traffic kids people everywhere etc. Up the road, ok. Onto a junction with a mini roundabout on it. Gridlock - everyone is giving way to everyone else so I decide to take the initiative and go. So round the roundabout and on - probably less than 10 mph, still lots of people around. However - a zebra crossing is right by the roundabout. Traffic, in this case is q-ed up over the zebra crossing - looks clear both ways, but as I cross a child steps out from behind the bus...........its far too late to react, but she is far enough away from me to pass so to speak ie I see her to my right just behind the bus.

I wasnt lagging it or anything like I said 10mph maybe, but surely at any speed I would have hurt her had she been a second earlier.

It just made me think, if shed run out or something - it was the last day of term kids were high as kites outside the gates I could have done a lot of damage, even if shed run into the side of me or something. It annoys me that the crossing is in such a stupid place, it seems totally dangerous.


How would you live with yourself if you killed a kid???? What would you get -prison, fine, ban etc etc ???? I have to say its **** me up a bit thinking about what "could have been"...............

Chip

You asked what you'd get for killing a kid.

A drunken 17yr old ran over a 12 yr old girl on a zebra crossing by my mothers house. The driver got out of the car with a can of cider in his hand.

He got 20 months and was out after 14 months. Justice I dont think so. That was 5 years ago.I think of that little girl every time I drive past her house.

As for the driver.Well, I expect he's in the pub now having a pint befopre driving home as he never did or has since shown any remorse.

Chip.

jaf01uk

The thing that annoys me is that council planners seem to have re discovered the Zebra Crossing WHY?? put these deathtraps outside primary schools? what a combination; kids with absolutely no understanding of the laws of physics coupled with the belief that all they need to do is step onto it and the world stops for them! The poor car driver will always be blamed if and when the inevitable happens as was nearly the case here, Whoever the hell makes these decisions obviously doesn't;
1) Have kids primary age
2) Drive a car
Gary

Steve Whitehorn

iTrader: (13)

Virtualy all accidents are caused by human error. F8ckwits basicaly. However there are a few that are sheer bad luck/fate s8it happens.
And I feel very sorry for the people that kill some one in these circumstances as it could happen to anyone of us.
So don't worry about it. At least you were aware enough of what a near miss it was and what the consequences were. You are just the kind of switched on chap that should be in charge of a scooby

Best wishes
Steve

Stiff

Had a similar incedent many years ago when I was 18. Came off a roundabout onto a road where a bus had pulled in to let people off. 13yr old girl gets off and sees a couple of her parents friends across the road and runs straight out in front of me. I was`nt even doing 30 but the thud she made still haunts me. Over the bonnet, up the screen and off the boot onto the kerb.Looked a mess. I heard she was in hospital for quite a while but luckily I think the worst thing she had was a broken leg. Shook me up for quite a long time I can tell you. Didn`t feel like driving for days.

Leslie

It just goes to show what a fine limit there can be between disaster and getting away with it. Sounds as though the timing was just lucky for you ADP and nothing bad happened. Even though it would not have been your fault it would have been a dreadful experience if you had hit the child.

We used to have really good pedestrian safety campaigns in the past and children and adult pedestrians used to take care before stepping into the road. These days I find that pedestrians behave as though they have complete right of way on the road and therefore consider that they personally are not required to think for themselves, as far as they are concerned it is the complete responsibility of the driver to miss them whatever they do. About time there was a shake up in that respect.

Les

Boro

iTrader: (1)

Maybe if the government decided to spend a fraction of speeding fines on educating the pedestrian then things like this would be far less common. I knocked a young lad off his bike, he was lucky, rode straight into the road on his bike, no helmet. When was the last time u saw a tv campaign telling kids to cross safely or always wear a helmet?

lmsbman

I don't want to sound all high and mighty, because this could happen to anyone of us. However, being a good driver means constantly weighing up the hazards and formulating a plan. If as you say there was traffic queued on the zebra crossing, then the onus is on your conscience to make sure no-one is trying to cross. I realise that there are many pedestrians out there who never look and some might say that they have it coming to them. However, most decent people would not be able to live with themselves if they did knock down a child.

My own motto is I'D RATHER NOT HAVE AN ACCIDENT, THAN HAVE ONE THAT WASN'T MY FAULT.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

My cousin hit a teenager whilst delivering a customer car back (just had body repair too - typical)

Basically walked out between two parked cars, he was doing 15-20mph. He literally walked into the car, a split second later and he would have just clouted the mirror and got his feet ran over. Made a mess of the car, wing bonnet, and football size lump in the smashed windscreen where his head hit.

Bloke survived, concusion, and broken leg I think.

It was blatant that my cousin was not at fault, the accident investigators were very thorough (they like to try and find something to pin on you). But skid marks, point and place of impact etc, all confirmed that there almost nothing more my cousin could have done in that situation, so no charges were brought about.

As for zebra crossings, why TF are they plonking them right on the exits of roundabouts? While your there checking no muppet on a scooter is on your inside etc You look up ahead again and wham - theres a bloke half way across a zebra crossing

There was a time when they would put a crossing futher down the road and railings to stop people crossing on islands and junctions. After all, did the green cross code say to avoid crossing on junctions and roundabout exits?

There is a severe lack of traffic awareness amoungst kids these days, too busy texting etc. And lack of idea that a car cannot stop on a penny. When was the last time you saw any safety campaigns orientated to pedestrians?

supertouring

I was nearly on the other end of this once when i was a kid. Bus stopped outside my house and it was throwing it down. Several people getting on so was waiting getting soaked. Decided to make a run for it - checked both ways and legged it from behind bus. There was a mini coming that I did not see - not sure who **** themselves the most - me or mini driver. He locked all wheels and I kept running - we missed each other.

We have a new crossing near us. It is manned by Lollypol lady during school times but the rest of the time it is not. It is so hard to see that no-one stops for you there. It needs to be raised so that cars have to slow wether anyone is on it or not. Very dangerous for kids who think that cars will automatically stop if you are on a crossing.

Brit_in_Japan

I've had a couple of incidents out here which were a bit too close. In Japan there are pedestrian crossings at most T junctions and crossroads, and pedrestrians always have priority. If you have a green light and are turning left or right at a crossroads, pedestrians have right of way to cross those side roads.

Cyclists use the pavements not the roads and they tend not to use lights at night. If they see the crossing signal on green they just launch themselves across it without any fear for their own safety. It's mad. I've had to anchor on a few times, and I've had one close shave when I simply forgot to check my blind spot and just made the turn, and the cyclist had to take avoiding action.

I'm now acclimatised to the rules of the road here, I think the added awareness will help when I return to blighty.

jaf01uk

Bring back the "Tufty Club" Might have to ask your parents
PS. Have to agree with the comment about crossings immediately after/on exit from roundabouts, desk driving idiot planners Like I said previously I dont like this trend towards re introducing Zebras to Britain, they are just plain dangerous (they must be cheaper or something)

Jen

Glad it was all ok Andy.

Crossing full stop are dangerous - but try telling that to the 100's of people that ring me up every month requesting them o/s schools etc. Zebras are a nightmare unless used almost constantly i.e. in a town centre etc. Drivers get used to people not using them and don't check.

However - the TOUCAN's and pelicans have the same applied, which is why it's so difficult o/s schools.

There are minimum distances from junctions and roundabouts etc. - if you're concerned write and complain, if there's an accident history things are more likley to get changed.

The only way is pedestrian education.

Oh - and it's not the planners - it's more likley the Engineering team And I drive a Land Rover - not a desk

angrynorth

My girlfriend hit a 14 year old lad whilst doing 30mph on a busy main road, broke his leg.

The little f*cker was playing chicken She says the thud on the windscreen is the most haunting sound. She wouldn't drive for months because this little **** thought he would have a laugh by showing his mates he was harder than a car.

What's worse is his ****** mum and dad tried to sue my girlfriend for compo. We ended up reversing the claim back at them and she had her bumper paid for by the family.

jaf01uk

Wondered if you would spot this one Jen Not a dig at planners in general, more the ones around here, an example there is a problem with flow of traffic at certain times so they commision a survey at a cost of £200,000 and then the next thing is they put a 3rd lane in at 2 r/bouts for going ahead, and put 2 pedestrian controlled crossings in, one within 30 feet of an underpass!!!

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Oooh theres a planner on SN...can I ask where on earth they came up the idiocracy of "the double mini roundabout" with obligatory zebra crossing on the exits?

Suddenly they are popping up everywhere, no one using them has a clue on what to do and who has right of way and to cap it off they have look out for the poor sod about to get run over on the crossing

They still build them even with strong public opposition against them and lobbying for traffic lights with a built in pelican crossing

ajm

and lost!

5 or 6 years ago I was passing a narrow part of a road and a woman was heading straight through the middle of it towards me, giving me no room at all. I was right over as far as possible and we hit wing mirrors. I was watching her face throughout and there was no fear on it at all... the look of surprise on her face when we hit showed that she genuinely thought she was going to make it through the gap with room to spare!

That's why you should never play chicken with a woman!

Jen

lol! I only looked because I know Andy ...still, wouldn't want to disappoint by not answering

We do it just to confuse you

Thing is - alot of people assume there's strong public opposition to things where there's actually strong support/pressure to get these things in. It's just because people see it from one side, but we get the phone calls/letters from both.

I personally dislike zebra crossings (especially anywhere near junctions!) and would try hard to never recommend them. Luckily in my borough it's very hard to get them anyway as there has to be such high pedestrian levels to justify them (road safety).

Still, I can recommend/disagree as much as I like - if the Councillors disagree, our advice can be completely ignored...they're the ones with the money and can essentially do what they like. Even though they have no experience/qualifiacations...and therein lies the thing I hate most about my job

bonkers

Probably a distant cousin of the idiot who decided that gas (petrol) stations should be sited right on the corners at intersections here in the US. You'll be following someone over a box junction happy as Larry and next thing you know he's slammed the anchors on and turning into the bloody forecourt - and they put the entrances right there at the junction!

Damn near rear-ended a 'stang that way one day, poor bugger must've soiled his britches, I know I did. (I was distracted for a second admiring another Subie... good job it wasn't a cute girl!)

Bonkers.

RRH

a friend of mine hit, and killed, a child, who was playing chicken on the M57 -in the dark.

not fair.