atctia t1_j6o7g8p wrote
As a former VCU student, ive crossed that spot countless times both while driving and walking to class. I can most definitely say that there have been times where cars were going way too fast in that area. I can also say, because I was guilty of it, that students are not always careful when crossing streets. When I was a student I was often distracted when crossing streets, more focused on trying to get from the engineering building to my next class across campus in a measly 10 minutes. However, if cars would just slow down, it would alleviate so many problems
Radical-Normie t1_j6odza3 wrote
Drivers need to operate in a way that they can avoid reasonably foreseen hazards in an urban environment.
As long as we equate pedestrians “paying attention” with drivers “paying attention.” We’ll continue to never fix anything.
Drivers pose a bigger risk, they should be paying MORE attention.
I bet if you get minimum jail time for hitting a person, drivers will miraculously start paying more attention.
atctia t1_j6ogog7 wrote
I completely agree
tpasmall t1_j6p8fvw wrote
Without a doubt drivers need to pay more attention and the penalty needs to be higher for if they hit a pedestrian or cyclist. This needs to be a charge of vehicular manslaughter because it happened in a crosswalk, even if the driver had a green light.
That said, driving as defensively and alert as you can isn't always going to prevent an accident. I had a friend hit a pedestrian on 64 by the boulevard exit a few years back who was drunk and walking on the highway at night. My brother-in-law was driving down 301 at dusk and a pedestrian ran across the street without looking and got hit by his sideview mirror. Obviously these are highways and not pedestrian areas but still highlight the fact that you can't always punish the driver if they are driving defensively and the pedestrian is being reckless.
In the city is obviously a different issue, the streets are poorly designed, the speed limit is rarely enforced and people run red lights. They need to make it safer for pedestrians and if a driver hits a pedestrian due to negligence it needs to be at minimum a class 1 misdemeanor even if there is no injury.
But if you're following the laws and a pedestrian walks out between 2 cars with their head down, headphones on, without checking the street, not at a crosswalk, you can't put the blame on the driver.
Radical-Normie t1_j6pfpe3 wrote
Understand that youre equating:
-
the risk of a student walking with headphones and not paying attention
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The risk of a 2500lb metal machine traveling over 25mph, distracted, in an urban environment.
We will continue to have people die, not just in Richmond, but across the country, because people think this way. Until we realize the latter is the bigger threat to life and act accordingly, we’ll keep on dying. I hope it doesn’t take a death of a family member to change your mind.
lame_gaming t1_j6pcz4g wrote
yeah. but even if a pedestrian pops out, especially in an area like vcu, they shouldn't die
neatlair t1_j6oi96u wrote
Isn’t a car a “reasonably foreseen hazard” for a pedestrian to pay attention to? When you’re on the road, in a car or on foot, you need to assume that everyone around you is 1. Stupid 2. Not paying attention. If you don’t want to get hit by a car, pay attention.
Asterion7 t1_j6ojady wrote
Both times I have been hit by a car on my bike I was paying attention and they "just didn't see me". Car drivers look for other cars and tune out pedestrians and bikes. It's just as likely it was a driver looking at his phone or running a red as a pedestrian not looking. But nice victim blaming.
Radical-Normie t1_j6oinoi wrote
The risk to OTHERS is NOT there for a pedestrian not paying attention. The risk is to themselves.
When a driver isn’t paying attention, the risk for OTHERS is escalated to a deadly measure. The driver is protected in the box, less risk for them.
Big difference.
I don’t blame you for thinking that way. Our culture has fostered that idea. It’s why we somehow don’t think it’s a big deal when people die just going from point a to b.
ImpressiveHunt810 t1_j6opjmo wrote
You need a license to drive, not a license to walk. And plenty of people get hit by cars while walking down the sidewalk; or crossing when they get a walk sign. There are also people who can't move our of the way of a car quickly who also deserve to move around without being run over. It's a choice we've made as a society to allow cars to go faster at the expense of pedestrian lives.
lame_gaming t1_j6pcmtz wrote
vcu is one of the most high pedestrian areas in the whole region, we should design streets to accommodate that
mindblowing, right?
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