South San Francisco, CA August 30, 2018 Submitted by SSFPD
South San Francisco Police reminds the public that “Pedestrians Don’t Have Armor”
September is Pedestrian Safety Month and the South San Francisco Police Department will be joining the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), along with other law enforcement agencies, transportation agencies and pedestrian advocates to promote public awareness aimed at pedestrian safety.
Both in California and nationally, the number of pedestrians killed or injured on roadways is rising at alarming rates. In 2016, 867 pedestrians were killed and more than 14,000 injured in California alone, a nearly 33 percent increase from 2012. In the last six years, South San Francisco Police Department investigated six pedestrian fatal collisions, 47 major injury pedestrian collisions, and 179 minor or moderate injury pedestrian collisions.
South San Francisco Police Department has mapped out locations over the past several years where pedestrian collisions have occurred along with the violations that led to those collisions.
Traffic officers working overtime and others on routine patrol will be focusing enforcement both on drivers as well as pedestrians who violate traffic laws, such as speeding, making illegal turns, driving distracted, failing to stop for signs and signals, or failing to yield to drivers or pedestrians.
The South San Francisco Police Department supports efforts by OTS to educate drivers that “Pedstrians Don’t Have Armor.”
This campaign highlights the importance of pedestrian safety awareness, regardless of whether one is on foot or behind the wheel pedestrians should always use crosswalks or intersections with a stop sign or light, make eye contact with drivers and look before stepping into a crosswalk. Drivers should be alert for pedestrians, use caution when backing up and be courteous and patient, waiting for pedestrians with right of way to safely cross street. Both drivers and pedestrians should avoid distractions by not using cell phones and focusing on the task at hand.
Safety goes both ways, and drivers and pedestrians must work together to exhibit safe behaviors that protect themselves and those around them, reducing injuries and saving lives.