SURREY — Police are urging caution and are stepping up enforcement at several Surrey intersections after a rash of crashes involving pedestrians.
“Quite simply, if you are distracted or not paying attention to what’s happening on the road in front of you, you are dramatically increasing your risk of either being a victim or the driver involved in a serious pedestrian motor vehicle incident,” said Surrey RCMP Corporal Scotty Schumann in a release. “For both drivers and pedestrians, it is a good time to review those safety tips including making eye contact with drivers before crossing and always being ready to yield to pedestrians.”
Last week, pedestrians were hurt in four separate crashes.
Most recently, a 77-year-old woman was hit while crossing the intersection southbound at 72nd Avenue and 121st Street. There is not a crosswalk at this intersection.
Police say she was hit by a northbound vehicle that was taking an eastbound turn onto 72nd Avenue.
The woman was taken to hospital with several serious injuries. Police say the driver, a 27-year-old Surrey man, was co-operating with police. Speed and impairment are not suspected, police say.
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On Friday morning, a 25-year-old woman was sent to hospital with life-threatening injuries after she was hit by a vehicle in Guildford. Surrey RCMP say she was hit at 7:30 a.m. while she was crossing the intersection of 142nd Street and 108th Avenue. There is no crosswalk at this intersection.
Police say 108th Avenue was closed for several hours while the Surrey RCMP Criminal Collision Investigation Team investigated, along with help from the Surrey RCMP’s Traffic Services and the Integrated Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Service. Impairment is not believed to be a factor in the crash.
And on Wednesday, a 73-year-old Surrey man was struck by a car at 176A Street and Highway 10, at about 6 p.m. The car's windshield on the driver's side was smashed. The man is expected to recover. Surrey RCMP Sgt. Paul Hayes told the Now the pedestrian had been jay-walking and alcohol might have been a factor on his part. The collision is still under investigation.
Also Wednesday, a driver was issued a fail-to-yield traffic ticket after she pulled out of a shopping mall and struck a man who had been crossing at a crosswalk at 120th Street and 72nd Avenue. Hayes said the pedestrian's injuries were minor.
This collision happened at 3:45 p.m.
In 2015, eight out of the 15 fatal traffic collisions in Surrey involved pedestrians. Over the past few years, over 40 per cent of the fatal collisions in Surrey have involved pedestrians. ICBC notes that 75 per cent of crashes involving pedestrians occur at intersections during the winter months (November to January) and usually on Fridays between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.
Anyone with more information on any of last week's crashes is asked to contact the Surrey RCMP at 604-599-0502 or Crime Stoppers, if they wish to remain anonymous, at 1-800-222-TIPS or www.solvecrime.ca.
With files from Tom Zytaruk