Focus on Reducing Pedestrian-MVI Incidents
Prince George, B.C.- The Officer in Charge of the Prince George RCMP Detachment, Superintendent Warren Brown plans to put a focus on reducing pedestrian-vehicle tragedies.Last fall, there were four incidents in Prince George in which 5 pedestrians lost their lives. Head of Traffic services for the Prince George detachment, Corporal Corey Eggen says 2014 was a bad year “So the OiC (Supt. Brown) is aware of it, and he wants some extra education and enforcement because of the incidents we had, so it’s become a strategic priority and we are going to be doing a few projects in the City.”
Cpl. Eggen says the Traffic Unit is working in partnership with ICBC and Community Policing to help spread the word about dangers, but other than visibility , there was no common thread that appeared in the tragic incidents of last fall. ” There was not really one thing we could concentrate on that would make it a little bit easier for enforcement.”
ICBC had launched a visibility campaign, handing out reflectors to pedestrians, Cpl. Eggen says there will be another education program launched later this spring “If the incidents had happened in one particular intersection it probably would have been an easy fix, we could concentrate on one area, but visibility? That’s not something we can concentrate in one area , it happens from one side of the City to the other.”
Cpl. Eggen says there is nothing that can be done by police to prevent jaywalkers, as there is no violation for jay walking under the Motor Vehicle Act , however, there are rules that require pedestrians to yield to vehicles “You can cross anywhere on the road, but when you’re not at a designated cross walk, or corner to corner, you have to yield to the vehicle, as opposed to the vehicle having to yield to the pedestrian.”
A report by the BC Coroners Service examined pedestrian fatalities between 2010 and 2012. That investigation found that of all the deaths, men were slightly more likely to be struck than women (54.2% and 45.8% respectively) and that most incidents occurred during the winter months, on Fridays and Saturdays, and between 4pm and midnight.
Cpl Eggen says the education and enforcement campaign won’t reach everyone “I think that ( education and enforcement) is going to work, of course we’re not going to eradicate it 100% and I wish I had the recipe for that.”
Comments
Speaking of pedestrians. If you’re riding a bike you are considered a vehicle and are subject to the same laws as any other vehicle. People do not have to yield to you at a pedestrian crossing.
one thing for pedestrians to do…
stop wearing all black or dark clothes at night when crossing streets, oh and when crossing streets please do so at an intersection, there I am extra vigilant for people and am more apt to see you in the light.,
Hmm….winter months between 4 to midnight… I think the common thread is darkness. The dim orange street lights we have are terrible. It must be some cost saving campaign to have these terrible lights, but the cost to human lives are not worth it. I find they don’t light anything up and I have had a hard time seeing people in any color clothing. Even reflectors are sometimes hard to see until you’re close up.
city lighting I agree will help! the hart needs lights up the hills. But in this town people are left to drive in any way they see fit because there is vary little chance of being caught! and when I see people walk right into traffic they are usually looking down at their little smart phone and don’t even bother looking for traffic!
so yeah good luck with this education and enforcement “story”
Some education of drivers would help too. If you’re trying to turn left on a solid green, the pedestrian has the right of way. I’ve witnessed too many close calls in broad daylight because some drivers are too damned impatient to wait.
I agree Boudicca – just another story, RCMP have no desire to deal with traffic issues, just not cool enough. But here’s a thought, how about if they assign just one, yes, just one officer to traffic duty, and tell him to do strict enforcement, rolling through stop signs, violating pedestrian right of way, etc., doesn’t matter, just enforce everything you see, but don’t write tickets. Just pull them over, verify they have license and insurance, then, take out the section of the MVA they violated, and ask them to read it to you, to make sure they understand the rules now. Call it education. Wasting 15 minutes of their time is way more effective than a ticket, and the officer isn’t tied up in court.
Taxpayers spent I don’t how much to provide a safer crossing between Pine Centre and PGSS and not very often does anyone ever press the button before crossing. There must be a way to teach people other than bouncing someone off the hood of a vehicle. Both pedestrians and drivers have to be more aware.
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