Road safety not just about vehicles

By Jaevion Nelson

It is rather curious that most of the road-safety campaigns - at least the ones I have seen - have overwhelming focus on motor vehicles and not pedestrians, who constitute the highest number of road-crash fatalities.

Many of our major roadways have no pedestrian crossings or lights. Those who commute by foot are, therefore, at great risk of being hit by a vehicle if they do not study the traffic lights carefully or make a simple misjudgement about the direction of the vehicles at a particular time. I've had a few close calls personally. There are very few pedestrian crossings from 'The Clock' in Half-Way Tree to Papine Square. Ideally, one should be in proximity to every bus stop since there are so many there. At major intersections such as East Kings House Road, Hope Road, and Lady Musgrave Road; Waterloo Avenue, Trafalgar Road and Hope Road, and Old Hope Road, Hope Road, and Barbican Road, there are no pedestrian lights or crossings. I worry whenever I see students from Ardenne High School walking home in the evenings, because crossing the road at the Devon House intersection is not an easy task. Then there is the whole issue of sidewalks (where they do exist) with utility poles, signs, and stalls obstructing people.

A COMMON PROBLEM

I consulted some friends on Facebook to determine if my observations are peculiar. Not surprisingly, they aren't. They said that, in the vicinity of the courthouse in May Pen, Clarendon, there is no pedestrian crossing. Similarly, on Oxford Road, there is no crossing - not even by the Planning Institute of Jamaica that has (additional?) parking on the opposite side. On Caledonia Drive in Mandeville, from the Manchester Shopping Centre to the Manchester Co-operative Credit Union, the situation is the same. Some are precariously placed. Along the highway from Discovery Bay to Montego Bay there are no pedestrian crossings unless there is a hotel close by. Likewise, when you drive from Bogue Estate in St James to Lucea in Hanover, there is only one pedestrian crossing in Hopewell and another in Sandy Bay and hardly any street lights, unless a hotel is nearby. This cannot be the way we go about ensuring road safety.

According to the National Road Safety Council (NRSC), "over the 10-year period 2000 to 2010, pedestrians and cyclists have contributed to more than 40 per cent of total fatal crashes." Data obtained from the Jamaica Constabulary Force Traffic Depart-ment reveal that, between 1992 and 2012, there were 2,261 pedestrian road fatalities out of a total of 7,456 across 11 categories of road-crash fatalities. That's about 30 per cent!

A release from the NRSC earlier this year stated: "Pedestrians stepping into the road without paying attention accounted for 25 per cent of road fatalities, while driver speed accounted for 11 per cent. Similarly, for fatal crashes involving cyclists, 20 per cent of the crashes were caused by turning out of side roads or improper turning."

I know that at some crossings such as the one in Half-Way Tree beside Jamaica National, the majority of people simply just cross as they feel like, even if there are vehicles racing towards them. But let's be honest. It is not that hard to get run over by a vehicle when you are crossing some of these intersections.

As a pedestrian, I can't help but wonder if there are any laws there to protect people like me. And if there are, where do I find them? I looked at the Road Traffic Act and found a bit of information in Part VI, but I doubt that is the only place stipulations concerning pedestrians can be found. A few questions come to mind that I think might be useful:

useful questions

What prevents utility companies and private individuals from erecting/installing whatever on sidewalks that may then obstruct people's movement, causing people who are blind, for example, to go into the road to pass? Or the man in his wheelchair who must find a way on to the road to go about his business?

What stipulates that there must be traffic and pedestrian lights? And pedestrian crossings?

Who ensures that those charged with the responsibility of installing and moving pedestrian crossings do so? Who is responsible for such a simple task anyway?

What does one do if one is hit by a vehicle at one of the intersections I named above, besides going to the hospital (providing you aren't dead)? Who would be responsible for such gross neglect?

What is the role of the National Road Safety Council and a similar unit at the Ministry of Transport, Works and Housing?

How many fatalities will it take before we do something about such an urgent matter? Which member of parliament will raise this issue in Gordon House on behalf of their constituents?

It's time we do something about this. Jamaica cannot become the place of choice to live, work, raise families, and do business if we can't do such a simple thing as having pedestrian crossings and lights.

Jaevion Nelson is a youth development, HIV and human rights advocate. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and jaevion@gmail.com.