A blind pedestrian in the dark of day

Pedestrians are one of the most vulnerable road users and drivers should be careful and cautious towards them, especially in the dark when visibility is reduced.

Which road users are regulated by law as pedestrians?

A pedestrian is any road user who is on the road outside a road vehicle and is not performing work on the road.

The following persons are also considered pedestrians:

1. who push or pull a baby carriage or wheelchair, bicycle, moped or motorcycle;
2. persons with permanent disabilities whose movement is carried out using a wheelchair.

What obligations do pedestrians have?

• Pedestrians are required to walk on the sidewalk or shoulder of the roadway. They may walk on the traffic lane that is opposite to the direction of traffic of road vehicles.
• When crossing, first choose a safe place to do so - a pedestrian crossing, a traffic light, or a place with good visibility on both sides.
• Before entering the traffic lane, they should take into account the distance to approaching vehicles and their speed.
• Pedestrians should not stop unnecessarily on the roadway, nor should they unnecessarily extend the path and crossing time.
• It is the duty of pedestrians to obey traffic lights and traffic controller signals.
• Outside of built-up areas and on two-lane two-way roads in built-up areas, when there is no pedestrian crossing near pedestrians, they may cross the roadway outside of the designated areas, but subject to the listed rules.

I was injured as a pedestrian in a road accident.

Good visibility and reflective elements = safety

A large proportion of accidents occur because drivers cannot see pedestrians. This problem is even more intense in bad weather or during the dark hours of the day. The causes are most often a combination of reduced visibility, inappropriate speed and incorrect movement of pedestrians on the roadway at the same time.

It is recommended that pedestrians wear appropriate clothing for this part of the day that will make them visible. Such clothing can be reflective vests or other reflective elements that attach to clothing.

When is complicity present in an accident involving a pedestrian?

For there to be complicity, it is necessary that the injured person, through his or her own unlawful actions, contributed to the occurrence of his or her injury.

When crossing the roadway, pedestrians are required to cross the pedestrian crossings in compliance with the above rules.

When any of them is not complied with, there is complicity.

Enhanced protection for certain categories of pedestrians

These are persons with permanent disabilities, in particular blind people who move with a white cane, deaf-blind people who move with a red-white cane, children and the elderly. The protection of these categories of pedestrians when crossing a pedestrian crossing is comprehensive and is not affected by the specifics of the rules for crossing a pedestrian crossing valid for other pedestrians.

In these cases, the driver of a car cannot raise an objection for complicity, even if such persons did not take into account his approach and suddenly crossed the pedestrian crossing.

Is a pedestrian's right to cross the roadway absolute depending on the location of the crossing?

The pedestrian's right is absolute, subject to compliance with the above rules, when the pedestrian crosses a specially marked or unmarked pedestrian crossing on the roadway, but signaled by a road sign.

It is also absolute when the crossing area is regulated by a traffic light system and the pedestrian enters at a permitted signal.

The same is true when a pedestrian crosses a space that is an extension of the sidewalks and shoulders onto the roadway at an intersection, and this right is exercised again subject to the above-listed rules.

However, the pedestrian's right to cross the roadway in a place not regulated for this purpose is not absolute.

In conclusion

According to data from Traffic police, The majority of accidents occur during the dark hours of the day, when pedestrians are less visible to drivers. The most vulnerable groups are people over 65 and children.