Whether you are training for a marathon or just trying to stay fit, running can be fun. However, if your only option is to run along busy streets, it can also be dangerous.
While drivers of vehicles have a responsibility to look out for anyone on foot, sometimes they don’t see a person, and that can have nasty consequences.
Hence, as a runner, it pays to consider how you can reduce the chances of that happening:
1. Take care with headphones
Many runners listen to music, as do many car drivers. While it can distract both, playing it through headphones (as runners must do because they don’t have speakers) is potentially worse. The headphones fill or cover the ears, blocking out other important sounds that help you to know a vehicle is close by.
2. Try to be predictable
Jumping off the sidewalk onto a road to avoid a slow-walking pedestrian or crossing 10 yards before a marked crossing, rather than at it, all make you less predictable.
3. Think about your visibility
It’s wrong to expect runners to go around wearing fluorescent colors or flashing lights. It’s the motorists’ job to spot people, whatever they are wearing. However, making yourself more visible will make you easier to spot. As can picking routes where there is better lighting, especially at points you need to cross.
All said and done, incidences of drivers injuring pedestrians are likely to continue, and if it happens to you, you’ll need legal help to understand how to claim compensation for your injuries and losses.