It seems awfully curmudgeonly to start a column by complaining about people being too nice, but gosh darn it, I’m going to do it.
Don’t you just hate it when cars stop for pedestrians?
No? OK, well, let me explain myself.
Now that it’s summertime, foot traffic in Victoria is swelling to its annual maximum. There are pedestrians in the parks, pedestrians on the sidewalks and — occasionally — pedestrians wanting to cross the road.
And since we’re all sharing the same space, sometimes a driver who’s feeling generous — and who wouldn’t be, driving in the sunshine with the windows down and the radio on? — will stop to let a pedestrian cross, even when it’s not the pedestrian’s turn, or when it gets in the way of the flow of traffic.
Big deal. Who cares? It’s good to see people being nice for once.
But I’ve become convinced that this is about the worst thing a driver can do to a pedestrian. Often when a car stops for someone, the pedestrian feels a sense of obligation to take advantage of the driver’s kindness. It’s not necessarily safe to cross, though. The driver isn’t thinking like a pedestrian: They’re thinking like a person in a car for whom it happens to be convenient to stop. But the pedestrian has a lot more worries than just your car, my friend.
First, traffic has stopped in only one lane, and pedestrians usually have to cross at least two. Crossing safely depends on the drivers in the other lane deciding that they, too, shall disobey the flow of traffic to let the pedestrian cross. This can take longer than the first driver is willing to wait. The first car can become a danger again, at any moment.
Second, the people behind the first car have no idea what’s going on. Not too long ago, my dad and I were driving around a corner and happened upon a stopped car. We slowed, then pulled out around it. It was only then that we noticed the woman crossing in front of the other car, but the other driver had no way to signal that to us.
There are also cyclists on the road who have every reason to believe that their lane will be uninterrupted by dashing pedestrians. Cars turning from nearby side streets are also dangerous.
Frankly, it’s bad news for everybody.
Speaking as a pedestrian, making assumptions about drivers’ behaviour is the most dangerous thing you can do. For this reason, it’s hugely frustrating when drivers stop in the middle of the road to let you pass simply to “be nice.” Please keep driving! I’ll cross when I’m comfortable.
It also sets you up for the extremely dangerous Scenario B. This is when a car slows, and you, the pedestrian, assume it’s going to let you cross, when really the driver was checking addresses or something. Now you’re not only crossing against the light, but you’re in immediate danger from the car you previously thought was waiting for you.
Scenario C is just plain awkward. Last summer I was standing at an intersection, waiting for my light to turn, when a woman in a truck thought she’d be nice and stop to let me go. Except that my DON’T WALK sign was still flashing. So I stood there like a moron, waiting for her patience to run out, until she made an exasperated gesture, yelled something at me (probably “moron”) and drove off. I crossed when the light changed, but neither of us was made happier by the experience.
Seriously, I appreciate the gesture, but I, as a pedestrian, have a much better understanding of when it’s safe for me to cross than you do, person-in-car. Ultimately, only the person crossing can be the judge of their personal safety, and you’re getting in the way of that evaluation as you try to happily wave them across.
Obviously, this isn’t a call for increased selfishness on the road. Rather, it’s a reminder that disobeying the established expectations of driving, even if you’re doing it the name of kindness, can be dangerous to the person you think you’re trying to help.
In a misunderstanding between a pedestrian and a car, the pedestrian is always going to lose. So let’s make it safer for everyone, by keeping those misunderstandings to a minimum, and driving (and crossing) as we ought.
