TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The weather is getting warmer and more people are choosing to walk around the city instead of drive.
But in the past eight days, we've had two people hit on very busy roads in Tallahassee.
It's hard to say if the number of accidents involving pedestrians are higher this year compared to previous years.
Unfortunately, these types of accidents seem to be more frequent in the spring and summer months as more people are enjoying the weather.
There are a number of designated crosswalks throughout the city.
The Tallahassee Police Department is urging walkers to use those crosswalks if they're available, as drivers must yield to people in the crosswalk. That means don't just cross wherever you think it's convenient.
"Cross at a diagonal as quickly as possible. But also, be aware of the cars going around because they may not see you because they're not expecting you to cross the roadway," said Damon Miller, TPD Public Information Officer Again. "Just make sure, take the extra minute or two just to go the the crosswalk. A lot of times too, you can and will be found at fault for the crash because you do not use a crosswalk and crosswalks are available."
And it may sound obvious, but we have to make this point, even if you are crossing at a crosswalk, it's good to look both ways before stepping into the street. This way, you make sure that drivers will stop at your crosswalk.
Officer Miller said that the police department has met with the Department of Transportation and traffic engineers in the city to try to come up with more ways to keep pedestrians safe when walking around town and across the street.
