It can be dangerous off the sidewalk
| Thursday, Nov 05 2009 08:18 PM
Last Updated Thursday, Nov 05 2009 08:18 PM
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I generally enjoy a long walk every morning, starting out sometime between 6:15 and 6:30 a.m., and returning home by 7:30. The other morning I was crossing the road at a marked intersection and had a car bear down on me at 7:30 a.m., midway into my crossing. This was after another car at 6:15 a.m. approached me without slowing down. I was already three-fourths over to the other sidewalk that time, but I knew that driver wasn't going only 40 mph.
I am reluctant to voice an opinion of all motorists, since I too drive a car. However, that morning these particular motorists did not slow down once they saw me crossing, and they didn't seem to be concerned that if I had stumbled or fallen, they would have run me over.
I have always thought that pedestrians have the right of way and that drivers were taught that fact. I forget that perhaps we have uninsured and unlicensed drivers on the road, and perhaps drivers who do not have common sense.
I hope people who teach other people to drive will consider advising the driver to slow down when they see a pedestrian and consider the possibility that the person walking may be moving at 2 mph, so that the driver should give them ample time and distance to cross a road safely.
No wonder there have been a number of hit-and-run incidents, given the driving behavior I've seen.
ARNOLD CHUN
Bakersfield
