3 recent N.B. pedestrian deaths highlight need for vigilance on roads
Snowbanks, darkness and lack of sidewalks, especially in rural areas, create problems
Police and a road-safety expert say the deaths of three pedestrians in the span of a single day this week serve as a tragic reminder to be cautious and follow road-safety rules.
Eric Hildebrand, a civil engineering professor at the University of New Brunswick with 40 years of experience in road safety, said pedestrian fatalities are relatively rare but this time of year requires extra awareness.
"With the accumulation of snowbanks on the side of the road, you know, any available shoulder space that's there for pedestrians tends to disappear," said Hildebrand. "So you know that, along with darkness … it becomes problematic.
"Unfortunately, it would be great to have sidewalks and wide shoulders and illumination everywhere, but it's just something that's not financially feasible."
Eric
Hildebrand, a civil engineering professor at the University of New
Brunswick, says there has been a steady downward trend in collisions
involving pedestrians and cyclists over the past 25 years. (Submitted by Eric Hildebrand)
On Dec. 2, there were three deaths related to pedestrian-vehicle collisions, according to the New Brunswick RCMP.
A 65-year-old woman from Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation on the Miramichi River was hit at around 5:10 a.m. on Nov. 29. She died Dec. 2 as a result of her injuries.
RCMP say an investigation is underway and poor weather and road conditions are believed to be factors.
A 40-year-old woman from Notre-Dame, near Moncton, was struck by a vehicle on the shoulder of Route 115 around midday on Dec. 2.
And that evening, a vehicle travelling eastbound on Bells Mills Road struck a 34-year-old man from Richibucto-Village, who was travelling in the same direction, police say.
Reminders for pedestrians, drivers
Cpl. Hans Ouellette, spokesperson for the New Brunswick RCMP, said it's important for drivers to remember to watch closely at marked and unmarked crosswalks, where pedestrians have the right of way.
According to the Motor Vehicle Act, unmarked crosswalks exist at intersections without traffic signals, at the end of each block, where there is a sidewalk on each side.
Ouellette said it's also crucial to avoid distractions such as cell phones and to drive according to the weather conditions.
Pedestrians can also take steps to be safe when walking on the roads, Ouellette said.
Cpl.
Hans Ouellette, spokesperson for the New Brunswick RCMP, says
pedestrians should walk against traffic and wear light-coloured clothing
if they are in an area without a sidewalk. (Ed Hunter/CBC)
If there's a sidewalk, he said that is the safest place for a pedestrian. If there isn't one, as in many rural areas of the province, he said to walk against traffic — facing the oncoming cars — and wear light-coloured or reflective clothing.
Ouellette
said it's important that drivers remember to drive according to weather
conditions, and that road shoulders can get smaller in winter because
of snow banks. (The Associated Press)
"Some of our shoulders are very, you know, small here in the province, so just taking that extra precaution can really help keep our roads safe," said Ouellette.
"I have seen it in my career as a police officer, people who are walking with very dark clothing in a very dark area. And as a pedestrian, you can see those vehicles very clearly — they have headlights, they're coming at you, so you see the vehicle — but the opposite is not true."
8 pedestrian, cyclist deaths in 2023
Hildebrand said he's been involved with a collision research team for over 30 years at UNB and his work shows that, historically, pedestrian and cyclist deaths in the province are relatively rare — limited to anywhere between six and 10 per year.
And while he said it's always a concern to see three back-to-back deaths, as happened this week, there has been a steady downward trend in collisions over the past 25 years.
"We've seen reductions by about 50 per cent and 75 per cent relative to pedestrians and cyclists collisions, respectively," Hildebrand said.
A
cyclist takes to the snowy Moncton streets. Hildebrand said pedestrian
and cyclist deaths have decreased over the last 25 years. (Rhythm Rathi/CBC)
That came as a surprise to him, as he said the study's hypothesis predicted that with an increase in active transportation, those numbers would have gone up.
Ouellette said out of the 81 collisions recorded by RCMP in New Brunswick that resulted in a death in 2023, eight of those involved either a pedestrian or cyclist.
And the year before that, he said that number was six.
"It does show that, you know, unfortunately, pedestrians and cyclists are still very vulnerable on the side of the road," said Ouellette.
"Let's just take those extra few seconds, those extra few minutes, to ensure that we're safe as a pedestrian and we're safe as as a driver … and if we can all do a little bit of that, I think, you know, maybe we can really bring those numbers down.
"Because one death on our highways is one too many."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
David Amos
IMHO The onus is upon the folks walking or biking on the roads to be careful and definitely not rely on the skills of folks driving the vehicles
Tom Smith
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I hope you realize that many of the folks walking and biking are minors. Minors with no expectation of competence or knowledge of motor vehicles. It's entirely up to licensed motorist to be on the look out and protect the more vulnerable people on the road.
David Amos
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Reply to Tom Smith
I consider it the parents job not to let their children play traffic Everybody knows there are legions of "licensed motorists" who either incredibly dumb or drink too much or drive too fast and have respect for the law or empathy for the well being of others.
I am in my seventies and rode motorcycles my whole life I relied on the competence of others I would not be typing this
David Amos
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Reply to Tom Smith
Why did you flag me???
David Amos
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I consider it the parents job not to let their children play traffic
David Amos
Reply to David Amos
Everybody knows there are legions of "licensed motorists" who have no respect for the law or empathy for the well being of others.
David Amos
Reply to David Amos
There are others who are either not paying attention or drinking too much or driving too fast Plus accidents do happen to responsible people as well
David Amos
Reply to David Amos
I am in my seventies and rode motorcycles my whole life if I had relied on the competence of others I would not be typing this
David Amos
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Reply to Tom Smith
BTW I figured out that you did not flag me and busted up my reply in order to find out what word put CBC in a tizzy
Tom Smith
Reply to David Amos
Picture a 13 year old, who in a moment on inattention while listening to music steps out onto a road after pressing the cross walk button, assuming traffic will stop because they hadn't yet had that learning experience yet with their heart in their throat because the traffic didn't stop. A driver who's in a rush figures, ahhh, the kid'll wait, ... but no. It's on the licensed driver to pay attention to all hazards on and off the road and protect the more vulnerable.
David Amos
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Reply to Tom Smith
What planet are you from?
Tom Smith
Reply to David Amos
Picture a kid, who is walking to school, but is unfortunate enough to live in an area where there are no sidewalks, or the city refuses to maintain them in the winter (Saint John), forced to walk on the road, and gets struck from behind.
Al Clark
Reply to Tom Smith
................while ignoring the inaptly named "common sense" to walk facing traffic.............
Tom Smith
Reply to Al Clark
There often aren't cross walks in the right spots to be able to navigate 'always facing traffic'... come-on use some of that common sense.
Al Clark
Reply to Tom Smith
Ever hear that saying "look both ways before crossing the street" and wondered what it could possibly mean?
Miraculously I have been crossing VERY busy roads for over half a century with no crosswalks, flashing lights, or collisions. I DO have a clue that cars and trucks are much bigger than I, valuable info.
David Amos
Reply to Al Clark
Amen
David Amos
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Deja Vu?
Fredericton woman dies after being hit by tow truck
CBC News · Posted: Dec 08, 2006 12:52 PM AST
A University of New Brunswick student died Thursday after beingstruck by a tow truck in Fredericton.
Cpl. Martin Gaudet, spokesman for the Fredericton Police Department, said 26-year-old Leslie Bruce was walking on the highway behind the Aitken Centre when she was hit by the truck.
It was the second accident involving a pedestrian in Fredericton on Thursday. A 50-year-old man lost his left leg afterhe was pinned between a truck and a guardrail in another area of the city. He is expected to recover.
Gaudet said an investigation is underway in both cases.
There's such a wide variety of why these accidents take place," he said. "Driver error, pedestrian error, weather conditions. ... It's very important for us to do a thorough investigation to be fair to all parties."
Bruce was the 28th pedestrian to be struck by a car in the city this year and the second to die.
Fredericton police have begun a special study on pedestrian accidents in the city.
David Amos
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Reply to David Amos
Accident victim urges drivers, walkers to slow down
CBC News · Posted: Dec 12, 2006 9:09 AM AST
A Fredericton woman who was hit and dragged 14 metres by a commercial van last month is urging drivers and pedestrians to watch out for each other.
"Sometimes pedestrians don't pay attention and they really need to," said Tanya Brown, 30, who was crossing an intersection on Bishop Drive on Nov. 3 when she was hit. "Walking is really good for your health and things like that, and you have to be careful and look both ways before crossing.
"For drivers too, they need to stop and just take their time to get where they are going and not be in such a hurry."
The accident left Brown with multiple fractures, including a broken femur, pelvis and ribs, a punctured lung and a sprained foot. She spent three weeks in hospital.
She's now recovering at home, but can't work yet and is using a walker to get around.
Brown is among 28 people hit by cars in Fredericton this year, and medical and law enforcement officials are concerned.
Last Thursday, a 50-year-old man lost his leg when he was hit and pinned against a guardrail. Later that day, a 26-year-old student was struck and killed by a tow truck while crossing a stretch of highway near the University of New Brunswick.
Brown feels lucky to have survived, and says both drivers and pedestrians need to slow down.
Al Clark
When I was a minor (5) walking about 1 km along a busy main artery to school twice per day (home for lunch) we were taught by parents, teachers, and other adults, along with tv and radio, to walk facing traffic, single file. Drunk driving was like a national pastime then and lanes didn't even have that little 1' shoulder. It doesn't too much thought to figure out if the car coming towards you is on a trajectory to hit you you can jump out of the way if you are looking at it.. Strange this isn't common knowledge today.
Before I get accused of victim blaming, I know nothing about these specific 3 tragedies.
I do know that I daily see teens and adults alike walking along with their back to me, frequently 2 abreast, and lacking the self preservation instinct to look over their shoulder or give up their claim to the pavement briefly.
David Amos
Reply to Al Clark
The self preservation instinct and common sense don't appear to be related anymore
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