Last month, a driver struck a mother and her 10-week-old baby in a crosswalk in St. Albert.
“I thought, hang on he’s not stopping. He’s coming toward me,” Nichola Hudson told the Gazette. “In a split second I pushed the stroller as far from me as I could, and kind of turned, and ended up on the hood of the vehicle.”
It's another example of bad driving and a particularly worrisome one given that 14,000 St. Albert students are now returning to school.
In this case, RCMP say the angle of the sun may have played a role. But that doesn't excuse a driver from exercising caution, especially in a marked crosswalk.
Luckily there weren’t to be any serious injuries from the collision. But often that's not the case; according to The City of St. Albert, between 2013-15 there were 33 pedestrian collisions, including 30 that caused injuries or resulted in fatalities.
The City of St. Albert has done its share to prevent pedestrian collisions. There are bright yellow crosswalks all over the city and new pedestrian signs are being place at 50 locations to help both drivers and pedestrians prevent collisions. "Point, Pause, Proceed" brochures are also being mailed to residents with utility bills.
Certainly pedestrians do play a role in avoiding collisions, but in cases like the one last month – where a mother with a stroller and a dog were in a marked crosswalk – it's clear that some drivers are not paying attention or exercising proper caution.
Residents of St. Albert will never forget the tragic death of Thomas Wedman in September 2013, when a six-year-old boy was killed in a crosswalk on his way to school. Since then, the city has made significant progress in improving crosswalk safety, especially in school zones. But it's also important for drivers to take on responsibility themselves, by not looking at their phones while driving, by driving the posted speed limit and even small things like having a pair of sunglasses handy should the angle of the sun obstruct your vision.
Pedestrians can be prone to their own bad behaviour and often take unnecessary risks such as jaywalking, or entering a crosswalk without looking. But as drivers, we need to be aware at all times and be prepared for the potential of unforeseen behaviour or sudden change in driving conditions.
Distracted driving has the potential to become the same type of societal issue that impaired driving was for decades. When you aren't focused on the task at hand – whether it be from a text message, a phone call, or simply being blinded by the light – you are distracted.
The fact that last month’s collision resulted in no injuries was simply blind luck. The next time we might not be so lucky.
