To think that drivers should wait for pedestrians to be safely out of the way on pedestrain crossings before they start driving

[tumtumtetum]

Walking back from the supermarket, crossing on the green man. DD is 18 mo and pretty good and she was going pretty quick. But admittedly we were about, oh, 5 seconds behind other people crossing.

The car decided we weren't going quick enough and as soon as the light was amber acceleralted swiftly towards us, missing toddler by 2 inches.

AIBU to think that people who move more slowly - old people and small people, or anyone who can't go as quick for whatever reason, should be able to cross at a pedestrain crossing? Or should they not be allowed out?

Or am I living in the 50's and it's perfectly fine these days to behave like this.

Incidentally the traffic was all down the high street so the car had to stop about 10 metres down the road anyway.

The reason drivers do this, is because there is no real sanction to driving badly.

The same reason they tailgate, jump reds, drive up on pavements, break the speed limit and justify it on the basis that they don't like the speed limit, etc.

As long as there are no real sanctions for shitty behaviour like this, it will continue.

Better to be 5 minutes late in this life than 50 years early into the next!!

I have reported someone b4 for going through a red light on a crossing. Police thanked me and said they needed 2 separate reports with number plate in order to proceed and would hope that someone else called in.

kitkat that is interesting - and makes me think that there is prob no point in reporting red light people. Especially here in London where the police aren't really interested unless it's a gang or terrorism related crime i don't think.

Don't think it's not worth reporting.

Just over a year ago a woman accelerated on just as I'd stepped onto a zebra crossing, missing me by inches.

The traffic was queued up, so I caught up with her on foot and remonstrated, taking her number.

The people in the car behind wound down their window and offered themselves as witnesses.

I reported it to the police, with the witness details.

It went to court, she was fined and had 6 points on her licence for failing to stop.

Bet she stops now! The crossing is close to at least three schools and there are often very young and very old people walking along, so I thought it was important to stop her mad behaviour - she was extremely rude to me when I'd pointed out what she'd done - said she hadn't seen me and the police wouldn't catch her because the car wasn't registered in her name.

I don't think it would've gone to court without witnesses though.

I think the clue is in the term 'pedestrian' crossing.

Vehicles are obliged by law to give way to pedestrians on crossings and on side roads and this basic rule of motoring is there for safety reasons. YANBU.

I don't know why anyone would want to risk hurting someone for the sake of a second or two.

I was in Sainsburys today and went to cross the zebra crossing in the carpark and a woman drove straight over it. I had DD in the carseat on the trolley.

What a beeyatch.

YANBU.

mamhaf - hurrah! and good for you!

YANBU

We have a crossing near us that gives you about 5 seconds to cross before the amber light starts flashing. That isn't enough time for an able-bodied adult to get from one side to the other never-mind small children or the elderly. Especially as you can't start crossing until you've checked the cars are actually going to stop....

I think it is worth reporting. It actually happened again tonite when I used the crossing. As i went to cross a car accelerated and went straight through. We had a fatality on the crossing a couple of months ago and I just thought yep that could have been me, so I called it in.

I was given 2 options either an officer could come round and do statements which would result in ( probably ) a court date or I could make an unnofficial report where they would put the incident on file in case anything else cropped up with the same vehicle and the officer would personally ring the driver and have a "chat" about being more careful in future.

The policeman i spoke to suggested that if I was concerned about the crossing I should contact my local council and they could potentially put in further traffic calming measures.

So I guess thats a job for monday.

Where abouts do you live kitkat?

I just ask because I have noticed that police forces around the country vary a lot in how they treat things/what they will investigate.

The response your police gave sounds wonderful, I just can't imagine getting that response from the met. Maybe I had better report the next one as see what happens.

The council thing is interesting - we have a set of lights here where the one on the left is obscured by signs and the otehr one is miles away and I have nearly been run over about 8 times - no exaggeration.

i rang the council and they would get someone to look at it. When I called back they said someone had looked and it was fine. it clearly isn't - you genuinely can't see it at all and so about 50% of drivers just drive straight through even though it's a green man. I said I was positive someone would be killed there and they basically told me to piss off.

It just makes you feel so powerless - someone is going to be hurt, I have tried to help (rang TFL as well) and everyone has just told me to fuck off

My friend had all the toes of one foot broken by someone driving over them as she stepped onto a zebra crossing She is diabetic and this type of injury is life threatening to her.

Ive got to go into town to get shoes for my ds this afternoon,,,,,,,,, i hate going over the crossing there and last time a car crossed when we were waiting and i shouted loudly at them when they had passed and shook my fist for good measure!!!

Go lottie!

moon66 did they catch the person who ran over your friend's foot? Did they stop?

No Tum, they didn't stop. Some bright spark said to my friend 'I hope you got their number'.

'oh aye' she said '5 broken toes, total agony, tears streaming down my face, crying - what do you think?'

It's defiantely worth reporting. Something similar happened to me. I had 2 mindees in a tandem double buggy and a 3 year old on reins walking. As always we stopped and waited for a redlight. A car going north stopped (so he was in the lane furthest away from us. The light went to red,and I started to cross, so the whole of the buggy was on teh road by this point. An idiot who was beihnd the stopped car pulled out and drove over the crossing, clipping the buggy. Thing is he went 4 ft down the road and stopped otuside the shop, which is where I was going. I parked the buggy outside and banged on his car roof, he completely ignored me. So, I called DH (the man was wearing RAF uniform) and gave his car registration number. DH then called the civvie cops who came round to the shop and charged him. he was stil in the car, obviously not wanting to get out, (which is probably just as well because I was so angry I would probably have hit him)and the car which he had overtaken at the lights stopped as wella nd gave a witness statement.

These stories are all so shocking. it just makes you wonder what the world is coming to (apart from me getting old if I'm using phrases like that!).

Do many people really not give a monkeys if they run someone down? it makes you wonder...

I mean FGS saltire's one HIT a PUSHCHAIR and didn't give a fuck

In Belgium 99% of drivers will not stop at a zebra crossing - unless it has lights. I have stood with a pram and the cars - whether young or older drivers just drive straight through. You have to step out onto the road (which I do not do) or try to flag them down. I get so angry about it.

What you have all described is appalling but in my experience most UK drivers do stop for predestrians - not here.

Message withdrawn

It wasn't like this here probably as little as 20 years ago bloss. It's since they took the policemen off the streets and put them somewhere else (have yet to fathom where yet).

What baffles me is that would all these people really be happy to knock someone down and kill them? My DH says not...

But if you're not happy to knock someone down and kill them why drive like that???

Hi Tumtumtetum, I live in norfolk and I have to admit was probably one of the worst areas for crime even 3 yrs ago. I can see the front door of my local shop from my house, but 3 years ago you wouldn't walk there after dark. Several people who did were mugged at gun point and the police realised they had let things get out of control. We now have bobbies back on the beat. Every couple of months 6 at most? they even knock on the door and ask if you have had any problems and how you feel things are going. I can honestly say this is a really nice place to live.

Personally if I had the problem described about obscured lights and the council had behaved like that I would have called the local paper. They love a good story about people being ignored. If you go for it take photos and make them promise to use one - find out what the deadline is and call the editor and have them read the story back to you. The last thing you want is "you say its dangerous they say it isn't" and thats that.

nothing to lose!

I meant one of the worst places for crime in norfolk.

kitkat I did email the local paper - a great long thing - the week after they ran something about how dangerous the roads in our borough are.

Thought it fitted in nicely - as in - yes they're dangerous cos the bloody traffic lights are obscured!

They never replied though. I don't know what else I can do

Sounds great having bobbies on the beat.

I have a theory that as the police get rated on catching criminals it doesn't make any sense to them to prevent crime - it only makes sense to let the crime happen and then to solve the more obvious cases. If they sucessfully prevented crime they would be working themselves out of a job.

Not cynical at all...

LOL!! sounds about right about police. Maybe they should be rated on crime level instead??!!

Next time you contact the paper ring them and get a reporter round. If they say they are too busy "no probs i'll ring your competitor" Works a charm.