Tragic Pedestrian Accident in Loudoun County Leads to Outcry for Safer Streets
The news is inundated with terrible stories about people who suffer losses every day, but the latest story out of Lansdowne, VA breaks our hearts. Today, a mother grieves the loss of her 5-month old baby after they were hit by a car while in a crosswalk on Riverside Parkway. As of yesterday, the “sheriff’s office and commonwealth’s attorney are determining whether to charge the driver,” according to NBC News.
The difficulty in determining whether or not to charge the driver has a lot of contributing factors. One such factor is the road itself, which residents claim is unsafe. Loudoun County Supervisor Ralph Buona (R) told NBC that “he’s talked with the Virginia Department of Transportation several times to discuss possible changes” to the roadway, stating “I’ve crossed several times myself, and you can see the issues. But you also have a lot of hills here and you have a lot of curbs, and as you go to the west, you have three more un-signalized crosswalks, all of which have limited visibility.”
What we can do to help keep children safe
As a general rule, pedestrians have the right of way in a crosswalk – unless, of course, the lights are indicating otherwise. The laws can be confusing to small children, too, who are more likely to dart out into the road, and who may be less visible to drivers because of their height. WalkSafe, a program created by the University of Miami, offers free resources to parents to teach their children about pedestrian safety. You can download the materials here.
Drivers, too, must take extra care in school zones (especially now that school is back in sessions) to ensure that tragic accidents like this do not happen. We must all be more attentive near crosswalks, around school buses, an on roadways where visibility is poor.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the family who have suffered such a terrible loss. We hope, over time, they can find some measure of peace.
Matthew A. Nace focuses his practice in the areas of medical malpractice, personal injury, trucking litigation, wrongful death, and other negligence cases. Read more about Matthew A. Nace.