Halloween is the deadliest day of the year for pedestrians. More than twice as many child pedestrian are killed in pedestrian accidents on Halloween than other days of the year. It’s a dangerous night for motorists, too, with intoxication playing a role in a large portion of Halloween accidents. If you are driving on Halloween, even during the day, you need to use extra caution. Here are some tips to help you avoid a real Halloween horror.
- Ditch the cell phone. Turn it off, lock it in the truck. Whatever you have to do. This is the one day of the year that you should expect the unexpected on the road more than any other, and you need to be focused.
- If you or your passengers are wearing costumes, make sure they don’t interfere with your vision or ability to maneuver while you drive.
- Be on the lookout for children darting out from between parked cars.
- Expect to see pedestrians, both children and adults, crossing in inappropriate places, rather than at intersections and crosswalks where they should be.
- Also, be looking for individuals and entire groups walking in the road, on medians, and on the curb.
- Be prepared for small children to be out trick-or-treating during the day, even during the lunch hour. Many communities and business districts host daytime trick-or-treating events.
- When you see a large group of trick-or-treaters, watch for stragglers who are separated from the group. They are the ones who are most likely to dart out in front of you trying to catch up to the others, just when you think it’s all clear.
- Go slow, slower than usual, in residential areas.
- Scan ahead and to the sides for children, kind of like you would for wildlife if you were a rural area, but now you’re checking yards and porches instead of fields, brush, and ditches. It can help anticipate children who may run out into traffic suddenly.
- Be extra careful when entering and exiting alleys and driveways.
If you or someone you know is injured this Halloween, please seek medical and legal help.
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