Flags Up for Pedestrian Safety

or one could wear a creature from the deep alien mask and flippers...

Great! Now pedestrians who don't know enough not to cross the street when cars are coming, can now die with a stupid little yellow flag in their hand. I have little doubt the city council's going to give this little nugget a go. After all, when all of the flags have been stolen by roving teens, or are adorning the stolen shopping carts of some of our urine soaked schizophrenics, the city can hire some union shop to keep producing the flags for twenty times more than they're worth. Sounds like a great idea! It's right up their with the painted blue line!

Hard to tell for sure from the Kirkland video, but it looks like they were using the flags at an intersection already equipped with bulb-outs.

Since too many self-obsessed Santa Barbara drivers already ignore traffic lights and limit lines at crosswalks, why would they pay attention to a little yellow flag?

Here's a better idea: leave a supply of paint ball guns at intersections so we can freely splatter offensive drivers!

Nice try by the creative Owen there, but about two seconds after the time of that photo he is about to get killed himself.

And we can read here that jkflbj here is writing it over and over again under a theory that repetition makes something true.

Here's an idea. When a car is coming, don't attempt to cross the street. Crazy, but it just might work.

People who watched the City Council meeting 2 weeks ago will recall that there are multiple safety objectives for the intersection that the author is standing at. Many of the accidents cited by the Transportation Dept and the traffic engineer were car-on-car. Bulbouts give cars crossing the intersection a better "line of sight" but flags would not help in this regard.

Other things that can help were mentioned in that meeting, including removing parking spaces near the intersection and removing trees (especially at the other nearby problem intersection @ DLV and Canon Perdido).

That intersection in the YT video looks like it might have a bulbout.

I would like a personal escort at each intersection and for each time a must cross a street in Santa Barbara.

@waz

The California Vehicle Code states:

21954. (a) Every pedestrian upon a roadway at any point other than within a marked crosswalk or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway so near as to constitute an immediate hazard.

(b) The provisions of this section shall not relieve the driver of a vehicle from the duty to exercise due care for the safety of any pedestrian upon a roadway.

To highlight, pedestrians are to yield when cars are "so near as to constitute an immediate hazard." This means that an auto at a distance would instead be required to yield right-of-way to the pedestrian, so that your statement of, "who don't know enough not to cross the street when cars are coming" just shows your ignorance of the requirements.

When receiving a driving license, it is assumed that one is agreeing to follow the 'Rules of the Road', which would include those laid out in the CVC. Drivers do not have carte blanche on the roads.

As to the flags, they probably work, because they not only work to get the attention of drivers, via color and movement (the vertical orientation of the human body is easily missed by viewing drivers--it's a biological issue), they also signal *intent* to cross the road. It's important that intent be conveyed, as to avoid the pedestrian on the curb playing the "can I go now" game, which signals hesitation and only makes drivers continue to barrel down the road, without stopping for them. The other, more life-threatening option is to risk stepping off the curb, and hoping/praying that oncoming drivers have the sense and ability to control their vehicles.

It sounds like an interesting idea that should be tried. As mentioned I drive down De La Vina and will stop if pedestrian is in croswalk. That is THE LAW. If I don't notice person or they are hesitating on curb and not in crosswalk yet I continue. By the way posted speed limit is 25 to 30 mph on this & most residential streets. Flag may make pedestrian more visible and signal intent to cross.

Attach the flag to a lance. Use it to shatter windshields and impale drivers that don't yield.

jfklbj....you make sense. So does the article. Many people who use electric wheelchairs and scooters have long flexible poles attached to their conveyances in order to better be seen as they move through foot traffic AND across streets. Those flags DO make a difference.

What I find sad is that it is so politically correct in SB to just bash everyone who drives a car...while sticking hands in driver's pockets to collect hefty registration and fuel taxes which pay for the road maintenance and creation of special bike lanes. Everyone seems to hate drivers, yet they are quite willing to make drivers PAY for everything.

This is a city. Lots of people live in SB. Some drive motor vehicles, others ride bikes, some use scooters and electric wheelchairs, others walk. There IS room for all, but not at the exclusion of anyone. I know that is not the popular or PC mob-mindset of the masses, but it IS the truth.

equus_posteriori (fitting name) -

Maybe we should hold up copies of The California Vehicle Code instead of little yellow flags. Personally, I'll just stick to waiting until all on-coming traffic has passed before I attempt to cross the street. Although, waving little flags in the air would give the local hippies yet another reason to draw attention to themselves. Why should the Solctice Parade be the only time of the year when they can say, "Hey! Look at me! I'm walking here!"

@waz

I guess you mean the "Solstice" Parade? About all I got out of your pointless rant was that you didn't use a spell-checker. And, with all that time waiting for the on-coming traffic to pass, you probably had time to use one. . . .

I may make a spelling error every once in a while, but at least I can cross the street without getting hit by a car. Real good catch on that spelling error though. You must be so proud.

Well, if you "until all on-coming traffic has passed", I doubt that you ever actually cross the road. You could probably learn something from the proverbial chicken.

And calling you out on the spelling error was only because the rest of your post was less noticeable.

Methinks you simply like to strut and fret upon the stage.

Wow! When did crossing the street ever become such a difficult endeavor for you people? Oh! I forgot! It's hard to cross the street safely when your head's up your behind!

I just have one question. Why are all you people so pissy and nasty to one another? Got some anger management problems? And how come you all hide behind those silly secret names? What's the point of all this meanness and bickering anyway? Well, I guess I should admit that's four questions before somebody calls me out on it. And I've double-checked my spelling too.

I, Carlos Wazny, for one was not pissy or nasty. Just giving my opinion on what I consider to be a very bad idea (perhaps with a little added commentary on typical Santa Barbara public policy formulation). Now old horse's hindquarters on the other hand, he/she thinks it's an absolute stroke of brilliance.

@OwenDell

Haven't you heard, it's the new millenia, where online anonymity lets one be the jerk that is normally unacceptable in public. The main problem is, that online comment streams not only allow the behavior, but I think it actually magnifies it.

Some people like to take not-so-subtle jibes at others, and when they get called on it, go crying like they are the victim. It's so common, that it must be an "average man" trait. Many are apparently also fans of drama, and I find posts by these people often demonstrate a lack of reading-comprehension, and seem to employ attitude as a tool in place of volume, since they can't kick and scream in a typed post.

@was (Carlos Wazny)

Do you want the last word? You can have it. :)

So, are you just mad that I thought your idea was stupid, or that I just expressed an opinion at all?

I'm not mad at all, and that's part of your lack of understanding. It's as if you project your own insecurity onto others as a defense mechanism.

My issue is more of *how* you express yourself--which is pretty childish, IMO.

If you're the same CW that works at Alliant Techsystems, then I also find it hilariously ironic, that you truly work in "rocket science", yet fail at basic, adult social interaction. (Still, I *shouldn't* find it surprising, as that appears to be the norm, nowadays.)

p.s.--I think this is approaching "flame war" status, so I will let this go here, although I won't necessarily shy away from it in other threads.