Reader Response Draft 2

In the article “Floor lights help 'smartphone-zombies' keep eye on the road”, Tan (2017) reports that the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has installed LED strips in pavements to help pedestrians be more aware of their surroundings when crossing the road. The initiative could be useful in combating the rise in pedestrians who are always looking at their mobile devices. Tan highlighted statistics provided by the Traffic Police showing that there was a 5.4% increase in traffic accidents involving pedestrians as compared to 2015. Tan also states that the LED strips are placed on trial at areas with high pedestrian activity to determine its effectiveness of keeping pedestrians alert of their surroundings. The LED strips will light up similarly to traditional traffic lights, providing a sense of familiarity to the pedestrians. In the article, Tan implies that "smartphone-zombies" are causing the rise in accidents involving pedestrians. However, there are other factors that have a greater impact on the rate of accidents involving pedestrians.

For instance, other factors include age, time of the day and the consumption of alcohol. This is according to the publication “Traffic safety facts” (United States of America. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 2013). Data in the publication reports that 29% of pedestrian injuries are attributed to the age groups ‘fifteen and under’ and ‘sixty-five and over’. The publication goes on to show that 70% of pedestrian fatalities occur at night, between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. when visibility is at the lowest for both drivers and pedestrians. Lastly, amongst all accidents that involve pedestrian fatalities, 16.8% of the pedestrians had a blood alcohol level high enough to be considered legally impaired. These statistics show that there are many other factors to take into consideration when judging what is the biggest hazard to pedestrian safety on the roads.

Amongst the various factors, age is a factor in raising the rates of pedestrian accidents in Singapore. Statistics from the Traffic Police (2016) state that rate of accidents involving elderly pedestrians increased 19.6% from 224 cases in 2015 to 268 cases in 2016. Of these accidents, 30.2% of them were caused by elderly pedestrians jaywalking. The number of jaywalking elderly pedestrians went up 42.1% from 57 cases in 2015 to 81 cases in 2016

LTA's LED strips would be made redundant if pedestrians do not abide to traffic laws and continue to jaywalk and not make used of pedestrian crossings. Ng (2017) reported that according to a Traffic Police (TP) spokesman, jaywalking has been on the rise in Singapore. There were 248 accidents involving jaywalker reported in 2016, a jump rise compared to two years ago in 2014, when there were only 195 such cases. The article interviewed a concerned resident who regularly sees pedestrians jaywalking in her neighbourhood. The resident remarked that pedestrians would rather risk jaywalking than make use of the overhead bridge a hundred meters away. This has resulted in an unfortunate accident, in which a pregnant woman lost her life while jaywalking.

From the various examples cited, it is prevalent that there are more important factors that we should prioritize in solving, rather that pouring more resources into the LED strips initiative. 


(words 542)



Edited 03/10/17
Edited 04/10/17
Edited 09/10/17





References

Ng, J. S. (2017, June 22). Pedestrian crossings and the problem of jaywalking. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/crossing-was-once-a-jaywalking-hot-spot

Singapore Police Force (2016) Annual road traffic situation. [News release].
Retrieved from https://www.police.gov.sg/news-and-publications/statistics

 Tan, C. (2017, May 10). Floor lights help 'smartphone zombies' keep eye on the road. The Straits Times Retrieved from
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/floor-lights-help-smartphone-zombies-keep-eye-on-the-road

United States of America, Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. (2013). Traffic safety facts. (DOT HS 811 748).


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