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, which can prevent many a child pedestrian accident. 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:

Preschool

• 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.

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.

However, teaching children how to safely cross the street is not enough. One of the best ways to prevent child pedestrian accidents is by increasing “walkability” in your community. 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.

If you want to avoid getting hit by cars, you need to know pedestrian accidents facts. Follow these tips, and you can avoid many of the most common accidents on the road.

When walking on a road with no sidewalk, walk on the left side of the road.
Few people are even familiar with, and even fewer follow, this important recommendation. We are so ingrained to walk and drive on the right side that it strikes us as inherently dangerous to walk against the traffic direction. The opposite, in fact, is true. If you must walk on a road with no sidewalk—which is to be avoided if possible—it’s safer to do so on the left side of the road. You’re more likely to see approaching cars in advance, giving you more time to get out of the way and negating the possibility that you’ll take an unintentional sideways step at just the moment a car is passing you from behind.

Be especially cautious at night.
It should come as no surprise that, according to recent statistics, the majority of fatal pedestrian accidents occur between 6 PM and midnight. Pedestrians—who, unlike cars don’t come equipped with headlights—are much more difficult to see at night. Even on a clear night, for example, drivers’ visibility is diminished—the headlights cannot follow the curves of the road. What they can see is limited to the angle and range of the beams, giving them visual access to far less of the environment than during the day. If you must walk on the road at night, make sure to wear bright clothing to heighten your visibility. Wearing reflectors and carrying a flashlight is even better.

Don’t cross between two parked cars.
It’s especially dangerous to cross in the middle of the block between two cars parked on the side of the road. This is another common accident scenario. The danger derives at least partly from the fact that the pedestrian must be more or less in the road in order to see if it’s safe to cross. The pedestrian is also camouflaged by the parked cars, and any situation where both the pedestrian’s and the driver’s view of each other is compromised, accidents are likely to occur.

Don’t “dart out” or run into the street.
This one may also sound too obvious to mention, but so-called “dart out” accidents are disturbingly common, where the pedestrian appears suddenly in front of the car and the driver is unable to stop in time. Dart out accidents are also especially disadvantageous for the pedestrian because the driver is rarely judged to be at fault, which puts strict limits on the compensation that the pedestrian is entitled to.

Don’t assume that a car will stop for you.
A big one, to be sure. Many of the accidents I’ve dealt with over the years have involved one person putting too much faith in another. Drivers will do what they want, not what we as pedestrians want them to do or what we think they’re going to do. They see what they see, not what we assume they see, nor even necessarily what is right in front of them. There are a lot of inattentive, inexperienced and plain ole bad drivers out there, and we would all do well to remember that. Simply because you have the right of way does not guarantee your safety. The frequency of accidents is proof that people make mistakes. So walk defensively.

Learn more about pedestrian accidents facts at www.walkinginfo.org.

Many drivers choose hybrid cars not only for their fuel economy, but also because they run more quietly than traditional cars. But how quiet is too quiet? After spending decades trying to figure out how to make cars quieter, automakers and drivers are discovering that cars that are too quiet can be dangerous. Often, the noise of an oncoming vehicle can help prevent an accident with a pedestrian. Yet when hybrid cars are run at low speeds, before the combustion engine kicks in, they run nearly noiselessly, leaving pedestrians at risk of being surprised by an oncoming car. A study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has showed that hybrid cars are 50 percent more likely to be involved in accidents with pedestrians when operating at lower speeds.

In an effort to reduce such accidents, Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.) has introduced a bill which would require the establishment of a safety standard for cars to be equipped with “non-visual alerts.” These alerts would allow pedestrians to judge the vehicle’s location, direction, and speed. So far, the bill has earned 139 sponsors, according to the Washington Post.

It is still unclear what the required noise should be, however. Some auto manufacturers are working to develop sound that will both alert pedestrians and provide the car with an audio signature. Advocates for the blind however, say that electric cars should make similar noises to gas-powered cars, in an effort to avoid confusion. If the bill becomes law, automakers will be subject to both government regulation and consumer preference, given that some consumers may not want a car that makes an unusual noise. Nissan has proposed three new sounds to the NHTSA, including a chime, a melody, and a whirring sound. Over the next few years, automakers and regulators will likely be experimenting with what will be safest, in addition to what will be more marketable to drivers.

Read more on this issue from the Carquoteasap.com blog.

On April 17, an accident involving a pedestrian in a private driveway resulted in tragedy in Saint Mary’s County, MD. The victim, a 19-month old girl, was killed by a driver who was pulling out of a private driveway. The incident is currently being investigated by the Sheriff’s department.

This tragic accident points to a scenario that is all too common. Small children are often too small or too quick to be seen even by the most cautious driver. Drivers can help prevent these types of accidents by staying aware of blind spots at all times, particularly when turning or backing up. Larger vehicles such as trucks, vans and SUVs can make it difficult to see small children. 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. Parents should never allow young children to play in their own driveways or around parked cars.