‘We need to be vigilant;’ Officers urge drivers, walkers to be careful this fall

HUBER HEIGHTS — Police departments are urging both drivers and walkers to stay safe this fall.

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Every day in Ohio, vehicles hit nearly eight pedestrians, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP).

So, what can people do to stay while walking and what do drivers need to watch for this time of year?

News Center 7′s Taylor Robertson spoke with Huber Heights Police.

They said that many times people will hit the walk button and as soon as they see the signal to start walking, they waste no time in crossing the crosswalk.

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Officers told Robertson that pedestrians should be looking both ways and watching out for cars the same way drivers are expected to watch out for people walking.

If they are going to be walking on the road, they should be facing oncoming traffic so they can see who is coming toward them.

Drivers should always pay attention to pedestrians especially when driving in the dark.

Officer Nick Lambert said drivers should also ignore whatever is going on inside their vehicle and instead be scanning the road in front of them.

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“As the seasons change into fall, and even in winter, some people, they don’t like walking on a sidewalk,” he said. “So, for instance in the fall, there’s a lot of leaves on the sidewalk, they don’t want to walk on the leaves, so they’ll take the easier path for them which is walking in the road. For that, we need to be careful.

“We need to be vigilant and actually going the speed limit and watching out the front windshield.”

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Lambert also told Robertson the first thing people should do if they hit a pedestrian is to pull over and stop. Then, they should immediately call the police.

When drivers call the police, they should also make sure they know their location because that is one of the first things dispatchers will ask you.

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News Center 7 previously reported that there have been nearly 14,500 pedestrian crashes since 2014, according to OSHP.

More than 880 were in Montgomery County and nearly 400 were in Butler County.

There were more than 100 pedestrian crashes in both Clark and Greene Counties.

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