Hazard perception handbook - RTA

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Pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists
Pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists are vulnerable road users. They have no
protection in the event of a collision with a vehicle. A crash that leaves only a small
dent in your car could kill or injure an unprotected road user.
Unprotected road users are harder to see than cars or trucks. So scan carefully for
them. After all, you’d want drivers to look out for you when you are walking, cycling
or motorcycling.
PEdESTRIANS
While pedestrians can be found in many places, scan for them particularly around
shopping centres, schools, bus stops and intersections. you need to scan the road
and the footpath. Look between parked cars where your view of pedestrians,
particularly children, can be hidden.
Pedestrians can be unpredictable and may not cross where it is safe or legal. They
are also harder to see than vehicles. you may expect to see pedestrians at crossings
and intersections, but may not expect them to emerge from behind parked cars
mid-block.
Respond before reaching the hazard.
Hazard perception handbook
Crash
avoidance
space
To give yourself time and space to detect and deal with pedestrian hazards, slow
down on the approach to areas where you are likely to encounter pedestrians (eg
schools and shopping centres). you need to be particularly careful of children and
older people. Children can dart out on to the road very quickly and do not have the
road sense of adults. Older people are experienced road users, but they may not be
as agile or alert as younger people. This means that they may not look for traffic as
carefully and may take longer than expected to cross a road.