Accidents involving pedestrians

Traffic club calls for measures for safety paths

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(Bild: zoom.tirol)

Last year, 72 pedestrians were victims of traffic accidents at dusk or in the dark in the province of Salzburg, according to a recent VCÖ analysis based on data from Statistics Austria. One in four of these traffic accidents happened on a safety path. December was the month with the most pedestrian accidents in the dark.

The risk of accidents for pedestrians increases at dusk and in the dark. Last year, out of a total of 243 pedestrians who were victims of a traffic accident in Salzburg, 72 were hit at dusk or in the dark. Of these, 22 were seriously injured and a further two were so seriously injured that they lost their lives, as the VCÖ analysis shows. "17 pedestrians were hit on a safety path. This shows that more measures are also needed in this area to better protect the most vulnerable in traffic, and that means pedestrians, especially children and elderly people," says VCÖ expert Katharina Jaschinsky.

Adapt driving speed to visibility conditions
The VCÖ would like to remind everyone that it is important to drive with visibility in mind, or as it says in Section 20 of the Road Traffic Act: "The driver of a vehicle must adapt the driving speed to the visibility conditions." This means driving slower and more attentively in the dark and at dusk. And in particular when approaching a pedestrian crossing, the rule is to "take your foot off the accelerator", or as it is formulated in the Road Traffic Act: A vehicle may "only approach a pedestrian crossing at such a speed that the vehicle can stop in front of the crossing" (StVO § 9/2).

In daylight, pedestrians can make eye contact with the driver before crossing the road, but this is not possible in the dark. Waiting to see if the approaching car reduces speed and stops is very important for your own safety, emphasizes the VCÖ. The following applies at all times of the day: The safety lane must not be entered "immediately before an approaching vehicle and in a way that takes the driver by surprise" (StVO § 76 4b). However, older people or people with impaired mobility, for example, take longer to cross a road. A car that was not visible beforehand can approach at high speed when the person is already on the protective path.

Calls for an extension of the parking ban in front of safety paths
"This is why it is important to reduce speed in urban areas, to monitor speed limits and to illuminate safety paths well," says VCÖ expert Katharina Jaschinsky. Visibility in the vicinity of safety routes should also be improved so that drivers have a clear view of people trying to cross the road. In concrete terms, this means that the existing ban on stopping and parking in front of pedestrian crossings should be extended from the current five to ten meters, demands the VCÖ.

Five pedestrians who were victims of traffic accidents at dusk or in the dark last year were children. Here too, the VCÖ recalls the road traffic regulations. Children are excluded from the principle of trust and driving behavior must be adapted accordingly: "The driver of a vehicle must behave towards persons to whom the principle of trust does not apply, in particular by reducing speed and by being ready to brake, in such a way that any danger is excluded," says the Road Traffic Act (StVO, §3).

30 instead of 50 km/h in urban areas
In addition, the "invisible safety lane" regulation has applied to children for 30 years. Children must be able to cross the road safely and unhindered even where there is no safety path. "Wherever people are on the road, mistakes happen. But mistakes must not end fatally. Traffic planning can protect children from mistakes made by adults in road traffic by implementing traffic calming measures in urban areas and increasing the speed limit to 30 instead of 50 km/h," says VCÖ expert Katharina Jaschinsky, pointing out that the stopping distance, i.e. reaction distance plus braking distance, is half as short at 30 km/h as at 50 km/h.

The VCÖ also emphasizes the importance of sidewalks between an urban area and the nearest residential area for pedestrian safety. Time and again, serious accidents occur because pedestrians have to walk on the side of the road due to the lack of a sidewalk.