A 38-year-old pedestrian died Thursday after being struck by a car on Terminal Avenue; a man in his mid-60s was killed Sept. 18 crossing Victoria Drive; and, on Sept. 1 an 81 year old pedestrian was killed on SE Marine Drive.
That’s THREE pedestrian deaths on Vancouver streets in September alone … and who knows how many injuries there were!
Who was at fault in any of these cases is still being determined … but before anyone jumps to conclusion that the motorist is at fault, start paying attention to how arrogant, self-absorbed and almost suicidal many pedestrians have become!
Because in Vancouver … and, I suspect, around the Lower Mainland … police now ignore jaywalking, distracted street crossing (on cellphones) and ignoring the Don’t Walk warning.
Just a couple of weeks ago, when I was making a left turn at a traffic-signal-controlled intersection onto Broadway after oncoming traffic and the pedestrians had cleared, I almost hit a woman who dashed out to cross with only FOUR SECONDS left on the Don’t Walk signal!
Crossing Broadway! A street six lanes wide! With only seconds left! I stopped … and, luckily for her, the Broadway traffic … now with a full green light … stayed put until she made it across.
But what if someone travelling the curb lane, seeing a green light, had not seen her because of the vehicles in the middle lanes? She could have easily been another fatality or seriously injured.
She was being stupid, arrogant and selfish (motorists making turns also have rights … or at least, they used to until just years ago!)
Why did she do it?
I put it to you she is now the “norm” in Vancouver (and likely many other municipalities in BC) … because there is NO enforcement of PEDESTRIAN traffic violations, infractions … NONE!
In fact, if I recall correctly, it has been years since police conducted a downtown “blitz” against pedestrians, scooters and cyclists ignoring traffic rules, traffic lights, jaywalking etc. … and then, issued only “Warning” tickets.
Now we are seeing the results … deaths and injuries are piling up.
In Vancouver, the VPD reports in 2018, there were 8 pedestrian fatalities; in 2019, six; in 2020, five … but then … under the new “pedestrians free-for-all” rules … in 2021, there were 13 deaths; in 2022, eleven; in 2023, eleven; in 2026, seven, and, so far this year, already 12 … with three more months to go (amidst darker, wetter weather. (Read the full statistics report here: https://vpd.ca/crime-prevention-safety/road-safety/)
The City of Vancouver website states that in 2021 (too embarrassed to update?) there were also 270 traffic injuries requiring hospitalization and 7,390 minor injuries.
For the Lower Mainland, the pedestrian death toll was 25 in 2020; but hit 38 in 2021; 35 in 2022; and 41 in 2023!
But don’t blame only the motorists.
It’s time for police … and City Hall … to crack down on pedestrians too and hit them with real tickets, real fines for jaywalking, crossing against the lights and “distracted” walking … real moves that could just end up saving lives.
Harv Oberfeld
🇨🇦🇨🇦Check the labels! BUY Canadian!🇨🇦🇨🇦
(Follow @harveyoberfeld.ca on “X” for FREE First Alerts to new postings on this Blog)
Maaany years ago, when I was in Grade 8ish, some buddies and I were walking along a busy street, horsing around as young teens will do, pushing and shoving each other in fake battle. One of them pushed me hard enough that I staggered backwards into the street, causing a middle-aged male driver to lock up his brakes and swerve, missing me by inches. We made eye contact through his windshield.
Now, over 60 years later, I still occasionally think of that driver. The incident must have terrified him, and if not for his attention and driving skill… well… it may not have ended well. The incident also caused me, for the past 60ish years I’ve been driving, not to trust kids or other pedestrians on the street when I’m driving near them.
I owned several motorcycles through my life and all the bikers I knew, always assumed that everyone else on the road was out to kill them. I guess that’s the attitude I have for pedestrians – one of them, someday, is going to jump out in front of me. And now towards the end of my driving ‘career’, I still drive that way, believing it’s going to happen.
I don’t think police diligence towards pedestrians will make too much difference. In school in the 60s, they had us watch films of car accidents to shock us into being careful, and I think it worked for me. Maybe they need to do that with school kids – show realistic vids of people distracted by their phones, getting hit by cars when jaywalking or in crosswalks.
Kids (and adults too…) are always going to do dumb things as pedestrians and on their bikes. The onus is on us as drivers to spot them in time.
(Response:Hitting a pedestrian … even one totally at fault … must take a horrible toll on the driver.Whenever I am driving down a wide steet (three lanes in each direction) I always try to stay in the centre lane rather than drive in the lane right next to parked cars, because I am terrified that a kid will run out or somebody will throw their car door open. Thankfully, it very rarely happens… but pedestrians totally ignoring traffic laws,jaywalking, Don’t Walk lights, chatting or even texting on their phones as they cross busy streets has reached epidemic levels in Vancouver. It is only a matter of time until another pedestrian is injured or killed on our streets… especially if there is no move to try to curb the chaos! Ho)
Yesterday we were coming up to a controlled pedestrian corner where a pedestrian pushes a button and lights start flashing … nothing was happening when out of the blue a young lady on her iPhone just walks out on the street, and she did not push the button for the flashing lights … and she did not look one way or the other .. its as if she owned the road and to hell with all the drivers …
Its happening very much and here in Nanaimo no worse than Vancouver.
(Response: How did she (and pedestrians everywhere) develop that arrogance and sense of superiority? I blame city officials … some of them car haters … who have backed pedestrians’ sense of entitlement and encouraged police NOT to enforce pedestrian rules/infractions. I’m sure if she had stepped right in front of a vehicle and had been hit … those same officials would blame the driver! Ho)
I installed a car dash cam about 5 years ago after hearing an insurance “he said she said” horror story where the pedestrian was 100% at fault and the driver was stuck with a huge bill.
(Response: I had considered that myself, but living in Vancouver and having my car broken into three times already, I decided that would just make it number four! Ho)
many drivers/bikers/walkers are so involved with what ever, they don’t even notice police ticketing. Its why I like large speed bumps. Not the regular type you see in some lanes, but higher ones.
(Response: I disagree. If pedestrians pass a couple of cops watching/stopping/ticketing pedestrians rushing across a busy intersection against the Walk signal… they will remember that, and not just there. Ho)
Being an advocate for better transit, I may have some shape on the issue.
The problem is two fold:
1) Education
2) Our road design and planning date back to the 1920’s!
Back in kindergarten and up to grade 2 (1960 to 1963), we were subjected to movies and lectures about road safety and crosswalks. I still have vivid memories of the “Candy-Cane” people being hit by cars because they did not use a crosswalk.
My two sons who went to school in the 2000’snds did not have this sort of thing and except for a police man coming once in a year to discuss traffic safety there was nothing. Today, i would wager a good 80% of the population haven’t a clue about pedestrian safety, especially children and their damned E-scooters.
As much as possible, i do not drive from 8am to 9am and from 3pm to 4pm on school days, due to the fact that kids just do not obey the rules!
Then comes the issue of road design, which hasn’t changed much since the 1920’s and is now proving extremely dated in our ever more congested cities.
There should be a wholesale rethink on crosswalks and go the UK/European way of pedestrian crosswalks.
I propose 4 kinds of crosswalks, with all crosswalks being black and white hatched designs. This continuity will ensure safety for old and young alike. The cross walks being:
1) Urban non arterial street crosswalks at all street intersections, giving a legal right of way to pedestrians crossing a road.
2) Lit crosswalks on large speed bump for all school and park crosswalks. As schools and parks tend to have higher pedestrian flows the speed bumps will slow traffic.
3) Lit, pedestrian operated crosswalks on arterial roads. The Crosswalk will be lit during the night with flashing lights when a pedestrian pushes a button to cross.
4) Urban light controlled crosswalks at major intersections with walk/don’t walk lights for crosswalks crossing busy arterial streets.
Then comes the key, enforcement, which local authorities must do.
This will not cure the problem but I think go a long way to mitigate pedestrian deaths and injuries on our streets and roads.
(Response: I believe you could design the safest road system/intersections in the world … but that would not solve the problem of pedestrians who simply ignore the rules. No amount of design would solve the problem of those kinds of people who rush into an intersection with only a few secondsleft or stop those who read their texts/emails while walking out onto the road. But I would bet a $60 ticket might do it! Ho)
A $60 ticket is not much for those who have money.
Living close to an area with a lot of walkers, including high school children, we don’t have many problems The kids stay on the side walk, bike lanes and use cross walks or lights. Drivers learnt to slow down when the city installed that small mountain at one of the intersections. You hit it once, and only once unless you drive a very high truck. Its actually funny to see cars going too fast and hitting that mountain. It was some time ago a congested area. The city came in and reconfigured the whole area and it works fine.
Some people simply spend too much time looking at their phones, think they have priority over every thing and every one and actually don’t have a clue about how traffic is supposed to work. In the area I live there are a number of toddlers, up to 9 yr olds. all are very aware of traffic, are careful when vehicles come on the lane but they also have parents who trained them about side walks, roads and traffic. One little girl I remember her parents telling and showing her how to deal with traffic and then one day, was running for the road and when she got close to it, just stopped
Schools might consider classes on traffic and not just on paper but to actually have kids walk through areas and practise.
Tickets might be good, at least the cities could recoup some of the money which needs to be spent on medical care by the province.
(Response: School zones should be and are frequently enforced. I haven’t noticed kids being a big problem at intersections: it’s the self-absorbed adults who pose the greatest problems …because they know cops will do nothing and, most of the time, the vehicles will see/wait for them. But the statistics seem to indicate more hits these days … and that deserves action! Ho)
It’s to late Harvey this is the new normal generation of complete stupidity and device addiction. Drivers pedestrians up to and including big rig operators. People not paying attention at intersections because their in device zombieland. Drivers weaving on roads including rig operators because they are distracted dangerous Aholes now. Moms and Dads crossing intersections with baby not paying attention to.their surroundings because their on the device that’s made them.brain dead. I can’t agree that it’s the cops fault to.much because they are so stretched. They probably figure warnings fines dont cut it because the thing is out of control. There’s no stopping such mass stupidity on a grand scale. ICBC is completely useless. All they can do.is put out the propaganda advertising that just looks like their doing something but to no avail. But now it’s okay for people to.have their cell phones up on the dash in a bracket to.play with and have obscured vision. It’s all to.late to.turn.back the tide of the hordes of device infected zombies. Way to late. I don’t blame police for things that have gotten so.out of hand. They can only throw bandaid out. Are they gong have to be the guardians against such wonton madness by the public. No.
(Response: Vancouver has more than 1400 police officers: too many of them ride around in cars. They have to get out of their cars in the urban core areas and busy retail neighbourhoods to reduce crime and enhance the public’s feelings of safety. Also, while they are walking around, they can start enforcing pedestrian safety rules. Surely there are enough officers for occasional blitzes aimed at saving lives and injuries … outside the downtown Eastside … and writing REAL tickets to scofflaw pedestrians. Ho)
It’s both scofflaw device crazy pedestrians and entitled, negligent, device addicted drivers and the ICBC and police need to start getting them off the road. I know things are bad when cars to big rigs are weaving and drifting into other lanes or my lane and I can see them looking over and down. Many drivers are now blatantly buried in their device. Texting while driving seems to be prevalent now, because they are drifting all over and even off onto the shoulder. Never seen this before many years ago. People at intersections just sitting now at a green light and totally unaware of their surroundings, same as many pedestrians. It’s a sickness and I don’t think the fine and education thing is going to do much until some serious driver suspensions start getting into the public social world. No education training by cops or small fines is going to even put a
dent in it because these people will be at it again, because they are just so tied to their devices, they can’t kick the habit. Unlike drug addiction where many can be treated, this is not treatable unless some big serious fines and suspensions happen. The ICBC advertisements and signs on roads and blah blah blah is such a waste and complete b…..t. Police are not supposed to be social workers, educators for the dense and stupid. I don’t know about the police sitting in their vehicles to much and I personally wont make judgement to that. What I can say is this goes way deeper than just wasting time with petty fines and trying educating the entitled addicted uneducatable. Something else needs to be set up to really drive home the message, but it isn’t usseless ICBC messaging or minor rare infraction punishments. I don’t know the answer, but it’s getting worse. I’m afraid to be out driving and avoid it when I can because of the device sickness out there.
(Response: Maybe ICBC should do a TV/radio/billboard campaign warning pedestrians about the rising fatals and injury numbers? They did it for vehicles … and the numbers/claims did drop. So why not pedestrians too! Ho)
100%
ICBC should be producing tv commercials showing “black on black” clothed pedestrians on a dark rainy night.
OR
Show texting pedestrians getting creamed by a bus….
with a voice over saying….
“Your right of way is…… dead right”.
(Response: Good idea. I’m surprised that ICBC, and also in other provinces, they have not done much advertising to warn pedestrians not to wear dark clothing at night during the winter months… especially when it’s raining! Makes it so difficult to see them! That’s when peopke should be wearing bright, yellow or orange or light, green, etc. Ho)
Should be illegal to cross the street looking at your cell phone. It probably is but you wouldn’t know it. Add entitled cyclists and idiot scooter morons who seem to think crosswalks and sidewalks are their private domain.
(Response: Blog readers will recall I have written before about cyclists etc ignoring all the rules too without any consequence. What made me zero in on pedestrians this time was the fact that three pedestrians have been killed on Vancouver streets in just this month! That is just unacceptable… and although we do not know what the cause was in any of these cases yet, my own experience in watching a woman – across Broadway with only seconds left reminded me that there is no enforcement of any rules for pedestrians in the city. And I believe both police and city officials are negligent and not demanding of pedestrians the same respect for traffic rules that they insist on by motorist. Ho)
I totally agree with your latest comments Harvey. I see this everyday of my life living in Vancouver. These people show their disdain to all vehicles including buses which can more often than not be full of people. God forbid that they should move a little faster just to help out. They just saunter along.
I think it boils down to lack of civility for your fellow human beings. It’s a narcissus attitude that seems to run a muck in society these days. It’s all about me and myself that prevails in many areas of our every day lives.
I recall when I was younger my dad would say “after me you’re first” applied sometimes in life. It still does today, but now it’s at a whole new level.
(Response: you are absolutely correct when you refer to pedestrians who just across the intersection, totally oblivious to the fact that there are vehicles trying to make left turns or right turns before the light changes as well. Very selfish. Very self-centered. Very arrogant. Even when they start crossing after the Don’t Walk sign starts to flash. And they get away with it because there is no enforcement. Ho)
Well, I guess it depends which side if the wheel you are on. Or under.
I am a pedestrian, a driver, and a bus rider. I see all sides of this new world “me first” mentality, and I doubt there is any difference in the levels of “arrogance, stupidity and traffic infractions” between pedestrians and drivers.
Lack of enforcement is also equal on both sides.
Living in Sidney, a once quiet, respectful retirement-oriented community where, until the pandemic, everyone had a friend, neighbour, customer, or family member which was getting on in years, slowing, sometimes spatially unaware, and worthy of respect.
No more.
As a frequent town walker, there are at least two crosswalks where I point my phone camera at approaching vehicles as I enter from the curb, It is that bad. As a driver I am now more acutely aware of the “arrogance and stupidity” you describe.
As a bus rider, the first person to board is the one who happens to be standing where the bus door stops, regardless of who was there first. No orderly line up; every person for themselves.
When I board a full bus, though I don’t “look 82” most people are aware of my presence, but fail to make eye contact or surrender their seat. This is when I have fun: “which one of you youngsters is brave enough to be different and give me their seat?” One or two in 55 makes the motion and I reply with a smile, “thank you, your grandfather would be proud of you.”
A new era of aggressiveness has invaded every community, and it does not matter whether you are walking, driving, cycling, in a checkout, or fishing on a riverbank, everyone else was “here first” and more entitled. You are now invisible.
Enforcement, both officially and as a vocal community is outdated.
So, in the case of your topic, when it comes to who wins, the car has the highest survival rate.
(Response: Yes, you are quite correct… arrogance and rudeness is not restricted to pedestrians: motorists etc display it quite a lot as well. I learned a long time ago that when I am sitting at a red light and the light changes to green, count to two or three and look both ways to ensure someone isn’t flying through before I proceed. However, I have seen police pull over lots of motorists who commit infractions; I have seen intersection cameras, record, and penalize those who violate the rules; I have received tickets myself for traffic violations (last one 25 years ago) …. but although I have seen thousands of pedestrians crossing wherever they want, ignoring lights and rules, I have NEVER seen a pedestrian stopped, ticketed for an infraction. Maybe, just maybe, that’s why the number of pedestrians killed and injured is increasing? Ho)
There is a consensus that arrogant idiots abound on both sides. I say we should just let them continue committing suicide sedan.
Your notion that cop walkers and blitzes will make a difference is time tested ineffective. How often does a recurring speed trap change driving habits?
A block from my front door is an elementary school with a 30kph bumper car extravaganza. Cops sit there at least twice a week, talking, ticketing and tsk, tsking, yet the parents and kids continue to scoff, speed, jaywalk and make illegal, dangerous U-turns.
There are far greater things to cause us to rip our palms apart with our fingernails.
(Response: I understand your kind of “schadenfreude” attitude to pedestrians who ignore the laws and end up getting injured or worse. However, just imagine the psychological pain and trauma an innocent motorist goes through when they hit somebody who darted out between cars or crossed the road against the red light and because of other vehicles could not be seen until the last second! It must be a life altering horrible experience… and at least some of them might be preventable if cops handed out tickets to pedestrians the same way they dish them out to drivers. Ho)
Ok, so from your opening sentence citing pedestrian deaths on Terminal Avenue, Victoria Drive and SE Marine Drive, three areas of the city miles apart, and you wanting to deploy dozens of beat cops to hand out tickets to pedestrians.
How long before the merchants who are being robbed, beaten, vandalized, extorted, losing money and facing outrageous insurance costs, start screaming about resources being wasted on jaywalkers?
(Response: Not just to handle pedestrian violations. More police walking the beat has been shown to reduce crime and also make residents/shoppers feel safer. In Vancouver, almost all police are in pairs and in cars … which has proven totally ineffective in curbing street crime. Of course, I’m not saying get rid of the vehicles, but I believe dedicating more to street presence would prove successful. Ho)
100% Harvey.
The amount of pedestrian “scofflaws” jay shuffling as they text or read their phones is off the charts.
Right or left turns in traffic have become an “after the light has changed” norm because pedestrians saunter, shuffle and slow walk across intersections.
When I step off a curb I am on a 180 degree head swivel for my own self preservation.
These Darwin award contenders are completely oblivious to the world ( and the 3000lb vehicles whizzing past at 30/40/50 miles per hour.
Good luck with that.
This morning at 6am I intended to turn left at Imperial and Royal Oak in Burnaby.
Raining, dark with car heading towards me at breakneck speed….I had just enough time to make the turn….I looked and there she was…..
Dark jacket, dark pants, dark umbrella, face buried in her phone…middle of the crosswalk with a “dont walk ” signal flashing.
I kept driving to the next block for MY safe left turn.
Perhaps these people will be more diligent when they realize how crappy our medical system has become and ICBC isn’t handing out cheques to any and all for become the latest statistic in the “Car vs pedestrian” News reports.
(Response: Aah… pedestrians who wear dark clothing at night, in the rain, hiding under black umbrellas! I have often wondered why that is part of our society… To wear dark clothing in the fall and winter rather than bright clothing? Even after dark! It seems really dumb….almost suicidal. But at least, so far, that is not illegal. However, jaywalking is, I’m sure starting to cross a wide intersection with only four seconds left on the Don’t Walk light is probably an infraction… The problem is there is no enforcement by anyone at any time. And they wonder why more people are dying or being injured??? Blame the police and city officials who’s don’t ask, let alone demand, enforcement of rules by pedestrians as well as motorists. Ho)