Walking is good for your health, and it's good for the environment too. But before you head out on foot for a stroll, power walk, or errand, the Santa Clara Police Department would like to offer some suggestions to reduce your risk of injury of an accident.
- Whenever possible, cross the street at a designated crosswalk or intersection
- Use traffic signals where available
- Always look left, right, and left again before crossing a street and keep watching as you cross
- Use extra caution when crossing multiple lanes of traffic and watch for turning traffic
- Make sure you are seen by making eye contact with drivers when crossing a street, driveway or alley
- Increase your visibility at night by carrying a flashlight and wearing retro-reflective clothing
- It's safest to walk on a sidewalk, but if one is not available, walk on the shoulder and face traffic
- Use all your senses. Don’t use cell phones or other electronic devices and turn down headphones while crossing
- It is especially important to supervise children when crossing street as they are smaller, more difficult to see and may not be able to judge whether it is safe
- Have kids walk their bicycle across a street.
- Do not run when crossing the street.
Take steps to be safe when walking on roadways. This includes exercising caution at intersections and crosswalks and increasing your visibility at night by wearing retro-reflective clothing and carrying flashlights.
