2023-10-26 06:23:51
The transition to winter time, which will take place during the night from Saturday to Sunday, is synonymous with danger for pedestrians, due to the drop in light during rush hours, the Walloon Safety Agency warns on Thursday road. To raise awareness of the danger and the importance of making yourself visible, the AWSR is launching a campaign and will distribute visibility kits near Walloon stations on Thursday and Friday.
In the weeks following the time change, the risk of accidents with pedestrians increases particularly, emphasizes the AWSR. “Each year, between October and November, the number of pedestrian accidents occurring during rush hours increases by 21%, an increase which then continues in December (+8%),” details the Walloon agency. The evening rush hour is the riskiest, with twice as many accidents as in the morning.
As for cyclists, the number of collisions and victims drops in autumn, compared to spring and summer when the more favorable weather perhaps encourages more people to take out their two-wheelers. On the other hand, autumn and winter accidents are more serious. “This is explained by the shock linked in part to the difficulties in discerning these users in the dark, causing late braking and a high impact speed during collisions. »
To travel safely, there is only one solution: make yourself visible, insists the AWSR. Typically, a pedestrian is only visible 20 meters away in a motorist’s headlights, less than the 25 meters needed to stop a car traveling at 50 km/h. In wet conditions, the braking distance is even almost 40 meters. With retroreflective accessories, pedestrians and cyclists are visible from 150 meters away, seven times further than with dark clothing.
If making yourself visible seems to be part of the habits of cyclists, few Walloon pedestrians use this equipment, according to a recent study by the AWSR. This is why it decided to launch an awareness campaign, to call on motorists to be careful and remind pedestrians, cyclists and scooter riders to make themselves visible. More than 12,000 visibility kits will also be distributed on Thursday and Friday near the stations of Arlon, Libramont, Charleroi, Tournai, Namur, Gembloux, Liège, Verviers, Ottignies and Louvain-La-Neuve.
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