Tara Seel with Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) says many Manitobans are engaging in some very risky driving behaviours.
The topic right now is crosswalks, both marked and unmarked. A marked crosswalk features painted lines on the roadway, zebra stripes, or parallel lines. Unmarked crosswalks are where a sidewalk or curb extends across a road, but without any painted lines to mark the crossing area.
What Seel has been noticing lately is motorists stopping for pedestrians as they cross the road. That's the good news. The bad news? Seel says some drivers attempt to pass the stopped vehicle.
"This is putting not only the pedestrians in danger, but those in the stopped vehicles as well," said Seel. "It's a pretty risky driving behaviour that has the potential to be very dangerous and even fatal for pedestrians who are considered very vulnerable road users."
Seel urges motorists not to pass stopped vehicles when a pedestrian is crossing the road. No matter where you need to go, the extra 30 seconds you may have to stop while a pedestrian crosses the road can prevent potential injury and even death.
"As a driver, stop and yield the right of way to pedestrians who are crossing," ended Seel. "If you're a pedestrian, cross the road as quickly as possible. We remind motorists that all pedestrians have the right to use crosswalks. We need to share the road."
Remember, if you're in a vehicle, you're protected. Pedestrians don't have that same type of protection.
