Distracted Pedestrians Cause Car Accidents Too

As lawyers practicing personal injury law in Miami and Fort Lauderdale, we are glad to see that some state legislatures are looking to increase public awareness about the dangers of pedestrians and bicycle riders who text and use personal music players while near motor vehicles.

In the words of the Governors Highway Safety Association, “distracted walkers and joggers,” also present a safety hazard on areas adjacent to a street or roadway. In downtown Miami and Fort Lauderdale, too often are pedestrians crossing the street, while using some type of electronic device, often walking directly into the path of an oncoming car. Not surprisingly, nationally, about twelve percent of traffic wrongful deaths involve pedestrians.

In the hopes of decreasing what are too often deadly accidents, we agree with such efforts to increase education about the dangers of walking or running while distracted by electronic devices.