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For those of us that need to walk while the powers that be figure out how to save us from cars, my suggestion is to assume that they can't see you. Because they

For those of us that need to walk while the powers that be figure out how to save us from cars, my suggestion is to assume that they can't see you. Because they probably can't. No, they don't see you when you cross the street when the light is green for you. No, they can't see you when you cross the street on a 25mph school zone. No, they can't see you when you walkway is closed (for construction) and you need to walk onto the road for a bit. And, they especially can't see you at night. If you make eye contact with its driver, then maybe they've seen you. Otherwise, they can't see you.

rootusrootus 4y ago
Eye contact is a good minimum bet. Not just a glance, either, humans are blind for something like 40 minutes a day and that may be one of those moments.
stevenwoo 4y ago
I've been hit twice on a bicycle by a car when the car had a stop sign and I had no sign/light at a T intersection and I was looking at the driver, people can get into a zone of looking for cars and just ignoring all else.
btrettel 4y ago
I'm a daily commuter cyclist. I try hard to be the most visible thing on the road. I always wear hi-viz clothing, always have front and rear lights (even in broad daylight), put reflective hi-viz tape on my bike and helmet, make eye contact with drivers, and politely wave at them as appropriate. (Surely other things as well; this is all from memory.) Despite all of this, I still regularly run into drivers who clearly don't see me. I'm lit up like a Christmas tree! The only conclusion I can come to is that a lot of drivers aren't paying attention. I think all the visibility changes I've made probably make a difference, but there's little I can do to for those who won't see me no matter what I do. Acting like other drivers can't see you leads to particularly conservative cycling. I do often wait for a road to be clear if I'm going through a dangerous stretch of road, but this adds a significant amount of time to my commute. The only thing I've found that works decently for drivers who clearly aren't paying attention is noise. I used to have an air horn, which I should start using again. I've been shouting as needed lately, which works but probably isn't good for my throat.
- jackson1442 4y ago
  I've been paying attention to my surroundings a bit more lately, and it's _shocking_ how many people don't even bother using hands-free technology with their phones. I frequently see people holding their phone 6 inches from their face, presumably on speaker phone (but probably using it more actively than that), which blocks a good 50% of their windshield. Even before I had a car with bluetooth capabilities, if I _needed_ to make a call on the road (which is already a very high bar), I would use the voice assistant to place a call on speaker phone and talk loud enough that it could catch my voice from the cupholder.
arandomsapien 4y ago
I am legally blind and must walk, but I can't see the drivers face. I've travelled around looking for good cities to call home, but haven't found one in the US. Given all the close calls I've had... I think my days are numbered and I can only hope it's a quick and mostly painless death.

rootusrootus 4y ago

Eye contact is a good minimum bet. Not just a glance, either, humans are blind for something like 40 minutes a day and that may be one of those moments.

stevenwoo 4y ago

I've been hit twice on a bicycle by a car when the car had a stop sign and I had no sign/light at a T intersection and I was looking at the driver, people can get into a zone of looking for cars and just ignoring all else.

btrettel 4y ago

I'm a daily commuter cyclist. I try hard to be the most visible thing on the road. I always wear hi-viz clothing, always have front and rear lights (even in broad daylight), put reflective hi-viz tape on my bike and helmet, make eye contact with drivers, and politely wave at them as appropriate. (Surely other things as well; this is all from memory.) Despite all of this, I still regularly run into drivers who clearly don't see me. I'm lit up like a Christmas tree! The only conclusion I can come to is that a lot of drivers aren't paying attention. I think all the visibility changes I've made probably make a difference, but there's little I can do to for those who won't see me no matter what I do. Acting like other drivers can't see you leads to particularly conservative cycling. I do often wait for a road to be clear if I'm going through a dangerous stretch of road, but this adds a significant amount of time to my commute. The only thing I've found that works decently for drivers who clearly aren't paying attention is noise. I used to have an air horn, which I should start using again. I've been shouting as needed lately, which works but probably isn't good for my throat.

jackson1442 4y ago
I've been paying attention to my surroundings a bit more lately, and it's _shocking_ how many people don't even bother using hands-free technology with their phones. I frequently see people holding their phone 6 inches from their face, presumably on speaker phone (but probably using it more actively than that), which blocks a good 50% of their windshield. Even before I had a car with bluetooth capabilities, if I _needed_ to make a call on the road (which is already a very high bar), I would use the voice assistant to place a call on speaker phone and talk loud enough that it could catch my voice from the cupholder.

arandomsapien 4y ago

I am legally blind and must walk, but I can't see the drivers face. I've travelled around looking for good cities to call home, but haven't found one in the US. Given all the close calls I've had... I think my days are numbered and I can only hope it's a quick and mostly painless death.