Pedestrian Safety Tips For Walking At Night

Posted on July 6, 2022 in Pedestrian Accidents

Pedestrian safety is of the utmost importance around the roadways, but the reality is that there are times when pedestrians face more dangers. This includes nighttime.

When individuals have to walk on or around the roadway at night, they must take extra precautions to ensure that they are visible and that they avoid collisions with vehicles and bicyclists. Here, we want to discuss some top safety tips for nighttime pedestrian walking.

Basic Nighttime Pedestrian Safety Tips You Need to Know

Pedestrians face a multitude of dangers, regardless of the time of day, if they are around motor vehicles. Nighttime is even trickier. Some of the most important safety tips that all pedestrians need to follow when they are walking at night include:

• Avoid walking in poorly lit areas. We strongly encourage all pedestrians to stick to areas where there are street lights, which typically means staying on the main roadways. At night, individuals should never take shortcuts through side streets or alleyways.
• Pedestrians should wear brightly colored clothing if they know they will be walking at nighttime. If walking at night is a regular occurrence, as is the case for those who wish to enjoy the cooler weather, individuals should have reflectors on their clothing or shoes to help them stand out to motor vehicle drivers.
• Pedestrians should carry some source of light with them. This could include a handheld flashlight or some type of light that attaches to their body. Sometimes, pedestrians wear hats with lights attached or some type of blinking light attached to clothing.
• Under Oregon law, pedestrians are required to use sidewalks when they are available, and they are also required to use marked crosswalks when they need to go across the road. Marked crosswalks can include intersections. Under Oregon law, every intersection is considered a crosswalk, whether it is marked or not.
• Pedestrians should never be distracted by their phones when they are walking at night time. The glare from the phone can significantly impair vision, not to mention the fact that looking at the phone is a distraction from what is going on around them.
• Pedestrians should not have earbuds or headphones over their ears at any time, as this will decrease their ability to hear any oncoming traffic.
• Pedestrians are encouraged to walk with a group or another person. There are a multitude of safety hazards individuals face when they walk alone at night aside from the dangers posed by motor vehicles. Nighttime is when individuals are much more likely to become victims of crime, and having others around will decrease this risk.
• Every pedestrian should assume that motorists cannot see them. Pedestrians should practice defensive walking and wait a few extra seconds for drivers to notice them if they have to proceed forward through an intersection.

What Happens if You Sustain an Injury?

If you or somebody you care about has been injured in a pedestrian accident in nighttime, you need to reach out to a skilled Portland pedestrian accident attorney as soon as possible. You may be able to recover various types of compensation if the other party was at fault for the incident. A lawyer will investigate what happened, handle filing the claim in negotiating with insurance carriers comma and work diligently to recover full compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, property damage expenses, more.