Pedestrian crossings and safety

Published on 25 February 2022

As a country we have a vision that nobody is killed or seriously injured on our roads. This is now being referred to as “Vision Zero."

Crossing the road should be easy, especially at a pedestrian crossing. However, here in Ōamaru we are experiencing too many near misses and those can so easily turn into a death or a serious injury.

At council we are hearing things like, ‘using any of the crossings in Waitaki is like taking your life into your hands’ from people, however there is currently no system to record the number of near misses people have when crossing the road. We can only listen to what we are hearing and consider the actual crashes reported to Police.

What those crash stats tell us is that since 2000, we have had 100 crashes recorded at pedestrian crossings, representing about 2% of all the crashes that have occurred on roads within the Waitaki district.

• Of those 100 crashes, 7 people were seriously injured.
• Of those 100 crashes, 4 pedestrians were the ones seriously hurt.
• Of those 7 serious injuries, they have all been at different crossing points throughout Oamaru.

Four pedestrians seriously injured, is four too many at what are supposed to be at safe crossing points. The amount of people walking or cycling is increasing, meaning more people crossing our roads. As a community we cannot have that meaning more near misses and more crashes.

While Council can work with its partners to improve the visibility of pedestrian crossings on roads, or work with the Police to help educate and take enforcement action on those motorists who don’t stop to let people cross, it is up to us all to make sure it is safe to cross.

We recognise that it not always the motorists who create these dangerous situations. But the motorist is protected by a tonne of metal, unlike a pedestrian, who has little to no protection.

Road Safety Co-ordinator Jason Evered says, “Crossing the road is something most of us are taught from a very early age. Look left, look right when clear, cross the road. Perhaps it is that very basic human survival skill that has meant we have not had more serious injuries or deaths at our crossings.”

Use a pedestrian crossing where one exists and teach children about crossing roads safely - assume a vehicle will not stop until it does. When at a crossing, look the driver in the eye and wait for them to stop, don’t start crossing until you are sure it is safe to do so.

If you are driving and approaching a pedestrian crossing, slow down and be prepared to stop if someone crosses or wants to cross. If it’s the busy end of school time, take extra care. Stay safe, Waitaki.