With Halloween creeping up fast, the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) says a new safety analysis may send chills down the backs of both parents and drivers alike. ODOT says the analysis shows that the likelihood of pedestrians and bicyclists getting hit by a vehicle increases 35 percent during the last seven days of October.
Even more scary, the ODOT safety study reveals that most at risk could be children taking part in Trick-or-Treat.
The new five-year ODOT safety analysis reviewed crash data for the last seven days of October, when communities across the state celebrate Halloween with children trick-or-treating from house to house.
ODOT’s safety experts say the increase is due to a combination of factors. First is the time of day: research shows that vision and depth perception are increasingly limited at dusk.
The second contributing factor is the large concentration of children walking, who often repeatedly cross the road at locations other than crosswalks or intersections.
ODOT’s safety experts offer these tips to make your trick-or-treat night safer:
Safety Tips for Trick-or-Treaters:
- Stay on the sidewalk
- Look both ways before you cross the street AND only cross the street at intersections
- Remember to trick-or-treat in groups and help each other follow pedestrian safety laws
- Make sure your costumes are visible to motorists
- Carry a flashlight
Safety Tips for Drivers:
- Pedestrians have the right of way
- Drive with headlights on
- Reduce speed
- Be especially careful at intersections
- Avoid distractions like cell phones
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