A dozen bunches of flowers tied roughly to the railings, a partially-deflated balloon doing its best to be less dense than air, a teddy bear garrotted by a nylon tie. We see them every few miles these days. They are stark reminders that in the battle between pedestrian and car there is only ever one winner.
I pass three of these memorials daily. One is barely fifty metres from a set of traffic lights - and safety. The second and third are at places on a motorway that no-one should attempt a crossing, but these too are less than a minute's walk from a safe crossing point. One is virtually adjacent to a subway.
Nearly always, the victims are teenagers "chancing it" across a too-busy road.
I offer no solution to this problem, only my profound sympathy for those left to mourn their loss.
Please be careful.
1 comment:
How did the flowers, balloon and teddy bear get there? The very spots where the accidents occured. The very places not to be.
From the adults who are charged with teaching road safety I assume.
Although in no way am I underestimating the devastation. Whenever this happens everyone is a victim. I feel sorry for the driver as well. The most upstanding member of society can, in a split second, become a ''killer''.
As children all of us have ''chanced it'', as motorists we've all sped and had ''near-misses'' - people take risks. Human nature is a strange thing.
Sadly, I have no solution either. I suspect there isn't a full one.
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