Be sure to look both sides before crossing
I saw a young man dash across the road to catch a bus, in the process, he was nearly rolled over by a large construction CAT truck. Later that day, I saw a well dressed woman walk across the zebra crossing without so much as a care about whether the car that was coming towards her was going to stop or not. In another instance, a bunch of shoppers step out onto the street immediately when the light go red for the cars and green man comes on.
Most times, cars will come obediently to a stop. There are times when they don't. Reckless drivers, drunken irresponsible drivers or drivers who feel that their time is wasted slowing down to a stop when the light goes amber or red, dash the line, missing pedestrians by mere inches.
Pedestrians say that they have the right and therefore, they are going to cross it. "It's my right of way, I will cross the road here because here is the zebra crossing." And they have the attitude that even if they got knocked down by a car, they are in the right and therefore " we can sue the driver for thousands of dollars".
And I've seen people giggling after they have dashed across a road with heavy traffic. They are of the attitude that drivers should slow down if they see people on the road. News: They do not expect you to be on the road.
Pedestrians, in my home city at least, also have a rather arrogant attitude that the law is on their side. This is because it is the drivers that get investigated whenever they are in an accident involving pedestrians. The first question asked is always, "Is the driver going too fast?" Here is something I think pedestrians crossing the road should realise: Whether the law is on your side or not is irrelevant. Because between you and the car, the car always wins, even if the driver is the one at fault. Just take a look at who gets what in an accident involving a pedestrian and a car.
Car: dents, costs to repair, fines, lost of driver's licence and maybe jail for driver if he is at fault.
Pedestrian: broken bones, broken head, broken life or lost of life.
People forget what they were taught as kids, always look both ways before crossing the street. Make sure the driver(s) sees you and is slowing down before stepping out onto the road. Don't take for granted that if there are stripes on the ground, or there's a 'green man', that you are ready to go. It doesn't matter who's right of way it is, because in an accident between pedestrian and car, the pedestrian always loses.