Almost got knocked over at a zebra crossing

They were acting dangerously by not stopping at a crossing that someone was using. And saying a driver may not have seen that it was a crossing is even more dangerous and shouldn't be driving.

I drilled it into my kids to wait for the car to stop and lock eyes with the driver before stepping onto a zebra crossing. You've got to assume the driver hasn't seen you unless you know for sure they have. I've also had loads of instances lately where pedestrians have turned 90 degrees and immediately walked out over a zebra crossing like it's a magic portal.

No driver should be unaware of a zebra crossing. They are distinctive for a reason!

I can’t tell if you’re joking or not, isn’t that the whole point of situational awareness when driving?

If you are driving and you don’t see someone on a zebra crossing or worse didn’t even see the zebra crossing then you’re driving dangerously and shouldn’t be on the road simple.

Sorry to hear that op.
"zebra crossings" on private land are often lethal, they are usually substandard often to the extent that they are just stripes on the road.
The stripes suggest to pedestrians that it's safe to cross but the drivers need the flashing lights etc too make it suitably visible according to the standards required.
Also there would have been bars on the road to mark a no parking area which is there to prevent visibility issues.

I hope you don’t drive if you think that’s acceptable. Being almost knocked over by an ignorant car driver who appears to need their eyes tested is not a non event. The onus is on the car driver to be vigilant to pedestrians at all times

The standard of driving has definitely gone downhill. These days you cannot guarantee a car will not sail through a red light despite the green man being illuminated and the beeps clearly audible.

What is all this nonsense about it being “random white lines” or a “courtesy” crossing?

All drivers should know that areas of road with white lines on them are where pedestrians might be. Do you really think that you can mow down a pedestrian in the Tesco car park and get off scot free?

Yes, there may not be an automatic penalty charge for failing to stop but it’s still a crime to injure or kill someone with your car, no matter where you were at the time.

There’s a zebra crossing right outside my flat. It’s in a pretty stupid place as it’s on a bend with side roads coming off within a few feet both sides. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve heard cars screeching to a halt as they come flying round the corner and realised someone is using the crossing.

It’s particularly precarious in the winter when it’s dark. I had more than one car swerve round me when I’ve been crossing the road with my dog. Despite us both being in reflective gear.

Is it in a McDonalds car park? If so its probably more of a courtesy crossing than a legal one so no Police action
Having said that in a Mc Donalds car park is bloody obvious there will be lots of people and possibly kids so drivers should be going slow enough to see and stop at any crossing.
I am glad you are Ok OP

Is this a formal crossing with lights and zig zag lines or just some random white lines painted on private property ?

Ideally zebra crossings should always work. In practice they don't, because people make mistakes and random situations can arise that affect peoples perception/visibility.

Even though as a pedestrian you have right of way, I always make sure I get eye contact with drivers before going across a crossing. Because they are in 2 tonnes worth of protective steel. And I have nothing.

By ensuring both parties take care and responsibility, more accidents are avoided.

Please report. Happens regularly at the crossing near my daughter s school. How I or anyone else not been hurt I don't know
Re the first person s comments...as a driver it your responsibility to check the crossing us clear. I hope you not a driver. Report as it's dangerous driving

Agreed. Thankfully I'm aware of my surroundings as both a pedestrian and as a driver. Recently I was crossing a zebra crossing that went the whole width of the road. Instead of OP's SUV blocking her from sight of any oncoming vehicles, I was hidden by a bus. I walked slowly, knowing I was invisible, and it's a good thing I did because if I'd been walking fast on the assumption that I had my right of way, I'd have been knocked over by the bus coming the other way!

The poor bus driver got a terrible fright when he realised I was there but thankfully I'd thought ahead. So many others wouldn't have. We've all seen people crossing roads without looking properly, or looking at their phones.

The driver in OP's original example should have approached the crossing with care, on the assumption that someone might have been crossing.

I would report it if you believe that even when you were visible the driver still hadn't seen you, or hadn't even bothered to look. My example I didn't report because the bus driver did see me, and had been cautious, but it still surprised him that I'd got so close. The look of shock on his face showed me he'd taken note of what could have happened.

I tell my children that whether they are drivers or pedestrians they should assume all other road users are high on drugs and act accordingly!

I would never step into a zebra crossing unless I could see it was safe both ways. I would never drive onto a zebra crossing unless I could see the whole crossing

I teach my children to wait to cross on any crossing until they can see clearly that it is safe in both directions

It wasn’t parked. It was in slow/stationary traffic.

Of course they should have stopped and it was dangerous that they didn't, but I personally think it is OTT reporting it to the police given no accident actually occurred.

I think virtually all of us have had close calls as both pedestrians and drivers, people not stopping even they should, pulling out when they shouldn't, thinking it's cheese when it's not, unwise overtakes, misjudging speeds etc. If we are being honest, some of these close calls will have been us being the driver, and we've afterwards thanked our lucky stars that nothing terrible happened, and vowed to be extra careful in the future.*

That's not to say that it's ok, it's not, but that thankfully there are a lot more close calls than accidents. All we can hope is most of the time people learn from their mistakes.

• It's those that think they've never screwed up that I worry about.

Surely the SUV was illegally parked? I'm pretty sure you can't park that close to a zebra crossing to avoid circumstances like these.

I've started to really dislike zebra crossings with 2 lanes as I've found myself in this scenario more than once as a pedestrian.

This. It’s a legal requirement to stop at a zebra crossing if there is a pedestrian on it - due care and attention requires that you slow down on approach to check whether someone is crossing. ‘Not visible’ because of two other STOPPED cars as you approach it is even more reason to stop.

OP, you might have been a child. Driver should be reported.

Sorry this happened to you OP. I always stop and wait for cars to stop before using a zebra crossing but even that is not safe. I once walked over one with my two DC - one in a pram and another on the buggy board. Cars on both sides of the road had stopped but as I walked over the crossing a woman overtook the three cars waiting for me to cross and almost knocked me over. She was absolutely hellbent on getting past those three cars that were waiting for me to cross. My guess is that she had been speeding round the corner at the end of the road and pulled out around the cars rather than smash into the one at the rear.

The onus is always on the motorist to be aware and able to stop.

Adult DD was knocked over by a car on a crossing in the city centre. Luckily other than a few cuts and bruises she wasn't hurt. The police attended and although she told them herself that she was partially to blame by not looking and stepping out without warning, the driver was still charged and convicted.

My philosophy on the roads is to treat everyone else, whether driver, pedestrian or cyclist, as a concussed duckling.

So even if a Zebra crossing looks clear, I still slow down and look left and right for anyway stray ducklings running onto the crossing.

Plus I have astigmatism so I’m cautious with myself too.

This has served me well, I’m coming up to 20 years no claims bonus this year.

Sometimes you get a zebra crossing with an 'island' in the centre in which case both zebra crossings are treated separately, so you do not have to stop if you are driving towards it and someone has stepped off the first part, but not reached the 'island' however in practice most people, me included would do so. NB not sure why photo has sensitive content on it.