Who's in the right here ?

[Deleted member 6183]

She's alive. He sacrificed 100 points.

The chump couldn't even do that right.

 

[E55BOF]

If she'd been a nun it would be 200 points.

 

[John]

Where's the cyclist and motorcyclist blame in all of this?

The whole reason for controlled crossings is for pedestrians and cars to cross safely knowing that the other is stopped by a red light.

But you can't safely know that. Not everyone takes notice of red lights either accidentally or deliberately.

 

[Mustang99]

Go on then, tell us specifically what the Golf driver did which was right.

Okay, my bad, didn't explain myself. The Golf driver didn't saw the lady so that's acceptable...what is not acceptable that he/she didn't stop to see what is going on. The driver who stopped and waited for the lady to pass was right judging from the moral point of view let's say...Anyhow, the pedestrians should have more awareness when it comes to crossing streets (and not pressing the damn button which would have avoid all of these).

 

[anglaslt]

.Anyhow, the pedestrians should have more awareness when it comes to crossing streets (and not pressing the damn button which would have avoid all of these).

Is that meant to be serious? Is a 30 second delay so important in your life that pedestrians (including children and the elderly) should not be allowed the safely of a light controlled crossing?

 

[Mustang99]

Is that meant to be serious? Is a 30 second delay so important in your life that pedestrians (including children and the elderly) should not be allowed the safely of a light controlled crossing?

No of course not...I always wait in situations like this. I`m just talking about others who cannot and will not...It's better to be safe than sorry, isn't it?

 

[oldguy57]

Pretty common sight in the North West to see very elderly pedestrians paying no attention to whether lights are at green or red at a crossing- they simply walk or shuffle across (and funnily enough are usually pushing some form of trolley) whether there is traffic approaching or not. Always best to slow right down so you can stop just in case. I'm sure its not going to be me saying "he/she should have pressed the button and it wasn't my fault."

Only recently I was keeping an eye on someone rattling along on a 4 wheel scooter thing on the pavement right by the curb . Sensed what he was about to do and stopped to get blasted by the car behind, just as the guy swerved without looking onto the crossing with the traffic lights at green. Traffic coming the other way screeched to a halt. Went on his merry way as though nothing had happened. You've got to admire these tough Northerners.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

Okay, my bad, didn't explain myself. The Golf driver didn't saw the lady so that's acceptable.

No it's not.

what is not acceptable that he/she didn't stop to see what is going on. The driver who stopped and waited for the lady to pass was right judging from the moral point of view let's say...Anyhow, the pedestrians should have more awareness when it comes to crossing streets (and not pressing the damn button which would have avoid all of these).

 

[John]

Yes it is.

What is not acceptable is, despite the car in lane 1, presuming there was no one there, nothing was going on and driving up to and through too fast without due care and attention.

 

[RonFleet]

Fact is, whether it's a 20mph side road or even a multi-lane motorway where pedestrians are not allowed, pedestrians have the right of way.....they are at the top of the "vulnerable user" pyramid, if I can refer to it like that.

Something to keep in mind is this:-

Rule 207
Particularly vulnerable pedestrians. These include:

• children and older pedestrians who may not be able to judge your speed and could step into the road in front of you. At 40 mph (64 km/h) your vehicle will probably kill any pedestrians it hits. At 20 mph (32 km/h) there is only a 1 in 20 chance of the pedestrian being killed. So kill your speed
• older pedestrians who may need more time to cross the road. Be patient and allow them to cross in their own time. Do not hurry them by revving your engine or edging forward
• people with disabilities. People with hearing impairments may not be aware of your vehicle approaching. Those with walking difficulties require more time
• blind or partially sighted people, who may be carrying a white cane using a guide dog. They may not be able to see you approaching
• deafblind people who may be carrying a white cane with a red band or using a dog with a red and white harness. They may not see or hear instructions or signals.

Implicit in that are slightly 'away-in-their-own-world-old ladies' and the OP most definitely did the correct thing by stopping when it was clear to him she was going to step out.

The ONLY villain in this scenario is the Golf driver. Not only did he/she overtake a vehicle on the approach to a crossing, he/she did not have the common sense to add two and two together i.e. why would a car be slowing/stopping when the light is green- I better exercise some caution here until I can see what's what.

Final point quoted directly from the Highway Code (note the first and last part of the sentence)
"GREEN means you may go on if the way is clear. Take special care if you intend to turn left or right and give way to pedestrians who are crossing"

The list should also include people concentrating so hard on their mobile phones that they just walk out in front of you. A young woman did that to me just a few days ago, and she was pushing a baby in a pushchair, for goodness sake! She was so busy texting that she was oblivious as to what was going on around her.

 

[Mustang99]

how is it not acceptable if he didn't have any way to see her?

 

[Ted]

Sorry, mate but a car is stopped at a crossing.
Surely, whatever the lights show, you have to suspect there is a reason for this, and slow right down.
It could be a cute little duckling crossing.
There again...

 

[John]

Sorry, mate but a car is stopped at a crossing.
Surely, whatever the lights show, you have to suspect there is a reason for this, and slow right down.
It could be a cute little duckling crossing.
There again...

That's the point though.

If she was 4ft tall, she could well be hidden behind the car.

It's not important whether she was seen or not.

It is important that a driver approaching that scenario have the common sense to realise the car in lane 1 is stopped at a crossing, which is cause for concern and should slow right down to be able to stop if necessary.

 

[markjay]

30 years ago I was a passanger in a car driven by an experienced driver, when a stray dog decided to try and run across 3 lanes of traffic. The driver stopped in time to avoid hitting the dog who passed in front of our bumper, but the car behind us to our right simply drove past our stopped car without braking or even slowing down, and sure enough hit the dog (I'll spare you the details).

I remember thinking at the time that only a complete novice or a complete idiot sails by a car stopped in the middle of a lane as if nothing has happened. And that's even without a zebra crossing or traffic light.

I think most members here will know the feeling - a car in front stops unexpectedly or inexplicably - your foot instinctively comes off the accelerator and your attention level immediately goes up, while in the back of your mind you're thinking "what is he doing"?

 

[oldguy57]

members here will know the feeling - a car in front stops unexpectedly or inexplicably - your foot instinctively comes off the accelerator and your attention level immediately goes up, while in the back of your mind you're thinking "what is he doing"?

The problem is of course that younger drivers, of which there are an increasing number, don't have the experience or perception to sense this.
On a similar note, the roads up here are flooded. I came up to a flooded section yesterday and waited behind another car as a few cars were queued in the opposite direction waiting for a young girl in a small car who clearly had no idea what to do. She inched into the water and back several times . In the meantime drivers behind fed up of waiting steered into a wide side road and out again to circumvent the water clearly showing her what to do. Did she follow- no drove straight through the flood water which poured over the bonnet as she sailed through. Fortunately some road maintenance guys were on hand to help as the car shuddered to a halt. Hydrolocked? I hope not.

 

[chrisk2010]

I was driving home Friday negotiating people slamming in reverse to parallel park, older people suddenly turning into Linford Christie when they see a gap in the traffic and the usual Land rovers parked so far away from the curb that you have no choice but to stop and go around when the car in front at green lights STOPPED ! I braked to see what idiot has dashed out in front of him and no one appeared .... he was stopping to let a father and daughter cross the road who were giving him no attention what so ever as there was no green man or beeping.
By the time the driver has realised he is P**ing in the wind with this act of kindness and moves off the lights turn red, he's gone and i'm the one left sat there watching the happy pedestrians skip across the road .

 

[Mustang99]

The problem is of course that younger drivers, of which there are an increasing number, don't have the experience or perception to sense this.
On a similar note, the roads up here are flooded. I came up to a flooded section yesterday and waited behind another car as a few cars were queued in the opposite direction waiting for a young girl in a small car who clearly had no idea what to do. She inched into the water and back several times . In the meantime drivers behind fed up of waiting steered into a wide side road and out again to circumvent the water clearly showing her what to do. Did she follow- no drove straight through the flood water which poured over the bonnet as she sailed through. Fortunately some road maintenance guys were on hand to help as the car shuddered to a halt. Hydrolocked? I hope not.

I believe that in some situations only experience can make the difference. My father used to say that until you have 100k km you cannot say that you have some experience on the roads...After hitting that milestone you can say that you encountered situations that build up your experience profile. Anyway, every day we are learning. I actually would like to be more patient in traffic and I`m thinking not to go angry for whatever reason but to wait and be responsible from now on.

 

[oldguy57]

I believe that in some situations only experience can make the difference. My father used to say that until you have 100k km you cannot say that you have some experience on the roads...After hitting that milestone you can say that you encountered situations that build up your experience profile. Anyway, every day we are learning. I actually would like to be more patient in traffic and I`m thinking not to go angry for whatever reason but to wait and be responsible from now on.

Experience is the key I think. I was recently a passenger being driven by a newly qualified 20 year old. One of the most sensible lads you could ever come across in life, it was indeed somewhat scary to see how remarkably unperceptive he was on the road.

 

[moog999]

Why would you stop at a green light to let young kids cross whilst there is traffic driving through the crossing coming from the other way? Unless you were trying to kill them?

 

[moog999]

I t...



If you are saying that there is a crossing which you and your kids will use when the lights let you, I agree. If you are advocating never showing any courtesy to pedestrians wishing to cross, I part company with you there. Notwithstanding, I'd not have stopped for the old lady in the situation given if the lights had been green, unless (of course) she had set out to cross anyway.

Why would you stop at a green light to let young kids cross whilst there is traffic driving through the crossing coming from the other way? Unless you were trying to kill them?