[nfbwatlk] FW: B-F RED LIGHT MEANS DANGER, AN ARTICLE

[Eric Calhoun]

Respond, please to johnjustice at comcast.net.

Eric


Original Message: 
From: "John Justice" <johnjustice at comcast.net>
To: <blind-friends at yahoogroups.com>
Subject: B-F RED LIGHT MEANS DANGER, AN ARTICLE
Date: 
Mon, 28 Apr 2008 18:16:58 -0400

Hello everyone,
I wrote this article recently after a very close call with a truck which
ran the light as I was crossing.  Please read this and consider my points. 
Comments and criticism are most welcome.

John Justice 
April 28, 2008

                                                RED LIGHT MEANS DANGER

                                                BY, JOHN JUSTICE 

 

                        Each time a visually impaired pedestrian takes to
the street, he or she is trusting to the skill and experience which has
been accumulated for years.  Most sighted walkers don't think about what
might come out of an intersecting driveway or where the next crack in the
sidewalk is located.  But for the blind, a careless person can often become
a danger to himself or to others.  A guide dog will help since their canine
instinct and training only adds to the blind traveler's own skill.  

                        However, in recent years, each visually impaired
person is playing in a rigged game.  The odds against him or her worsen
with each and every day.  What is it that makes today's driver think that
red lights are for someone else, not him or her?  Running a red light was
something that was done only by accident or necessity until quite recently.
 The situation has become so bad that some cities have implemented "red
light cameras"  which take pictures of vehicles who break the law and send
traffic citations directly to the owner.  But why now?  What has happened
to the inherent courtesy and care that we all used to count on?   

Our research  tells us that there are several reasons for this dangerous
change in the way people drive. The primary problem is traffic itself. 
There are many more vehicles on the road today than there were when the
first guide dogs were trained and released.  For the motorist, more traffic
means the higher probability of being hit by another vehicle.  With the
cost of car repairs today, it is no surprise that the driver will do
anything within his power to "get there in one piece"  and that means
running red lights when the necessity arises.  In fact, living our every
day lives requires a great deal more concentration and creates much more
stress and tension.  Today's vehicles are faster and more powerful than
those made even ten years ago.  But our ability as drivers has not grown
with the improvement of the average car.  The fact is that people take many
more chances now than they have in the past.  Drivers seem to think that
they have charmed lives in which things happen to other people, not them. 
That same kind of feeling of entitlement shows its ugly head in the
attitude of many drivers.  "Let the other guy wait, I'm in a hurry!"   "I
can run this light.  There's never anyone on that side street." The
expressions captured on driver's faces when an accident does occur are
almost comical in their intensity.  "This isn't supposed to happen to me! 
What went wrong?  Can I put the blame on someone else?" 

            Traffic engineers have recently introduced a process which is
supposed to eliminate clogging of vehicles at intersections where a red
light stops cars in one direction.  The driver, under set conditions, can
continue through the red and turn right.  The argument was that this would
relieve the congestion and that vehicles moving into the opposing traffic
could easily and quickly insert themselves into the flow.  All of this is
true as far as it goes but no one considers the pedestrian trying to cross
that same street.  If the person on foot happens to be blind, the
difficulty is multiplied.  Normally, a visually impaired walker is trained
to listen to the traffic passing and to move with the vehicles traveling in
the same direction as he is or coming toward him.  This was a safe and
relatively simple approach until right turn on red was introduced.  Now, no
matter which corner he chooses, the blind traveler might be subjected to
unexpected cars or trucks moving right into his supposedly safe walking
area. He or she has no way to know when this will happen.  The laws in
Pennsylvania clearly state that the pedestrian has the right of way in
every case.  But who would win an argument like that when the driver has
several tons of equipment on his side?  What's more, the blind pedestrian
can't see the license number and won't be able to report an infraction
which is the only way to deal with violations of this kind.  If a policeman
sees someone risking the life of a walking citizen by turning into him, a
ticket can be written immediately.  The charge is reckless driving and it
carries a hefty fine.  But how many times is that going to happen?  If you
think the driver doesn't realize that the person is blind, think again dear
reader.  This "me first at all costs"  generation will and often does take
advantage of the person's blindness.  That same kind of individual will cut
in front of a blind customer in a long line or speed up to make sure that
he is served before the woman in a wheelchair can reach the counter.  For
those who believe that this can't happen, forget it.  The observations used
as examples are based on personal experience.  

            What can we do as blind pedestrians to protect ourselves
against this menace?  Whenever possible, avoid busy streets.  If your state
has the right turn on red provision in its traffic ordinances, try to find
a corner where that isn't permitted.  Most of all, be alert at all times. 
Courtesy on the road is dead.  Don't become another traffic statistic.

 

    

John Justice 

My job feeds my family, music feeds my soul.

PERSONAL E-MAIL:  johnjustice at comcast.net 


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