For the Sun
Hi Seal Beach,
I hope you had a happy and safe Halloween!
Last week I wrote about pedestrian safety and how you can keep yourself safe when out and about. However, I neglected to write about some other important factors. Regular reader and local resident Lois wrote in to provide more information. See below:
To Ask-a-Cop:
I appreciated today’s column on driver and pedestrian safety practices, but I wish you had mentioned the all-too-common choice of dark clothing for walking, bicycling, skateboarding, and exercising dogs, especially when daylight is limited or in bad weather. Oftentimes, I’ve seen people crossing streets with no idea that they are not easily visible at dawn, dusk, and in the dark by drivers.
With the best intentions to carefully examine the roads at intersections, a driver is frequently hampered by corner foliage and signs, as well as dark clothing and people looking at their cell phones instead of watching for traffic. Common-sense reminders could save a life!
Please print a “postscript” on how light-colored clothing and extra attention to vehicles while walking or using the roadways can help keep us safe. Why the city planners and mall designers fail to put safety uppermost in their landscaping schemes is a mystery to me. Street corners with obscuring trees and shrubs are a hazard to safe driving, and the same can be said to allowing SUVs and big trucks to park within a few feet of a cross-street or alley entrance. I’ve been close to a collision on too many occasions in spite of creeping out of my alley by inches at a time just because my view of traffic or people on the sidewalk is blocked.
Thanks for your attention.
Hi Lois,
Thanks for your email. You bring up some very good points, and light-colored clothing, or even better, reflective clothing or accessories, are great for improving visibility.
As far as landscaping, the city of Seal Beach prioritizes safety in all areas. If you believe there is a safety issue with landscaping, trees, or shrubbery that impacts a driver or pedestrian’s ability to see, please let us know. You can call our non-emergency number of, (562) 594-7232, and we’ll send an officer to check the area.
