CARELESS WALKERS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 20 July 1938, Page 2

CARELESS WALKERS

OBSERVATIONS BY POLICE COMMISSIONER. Sir Philip Game, Commissioner of Police of London, addressing the National Safety First Association on the checking of the careless walker, cyclist and motorist, said he was inclined to think that the legislation they had now was consciously or unconsciously, based on common sense. When driving a car one had to be “90 per cent concentration,” and if one did something not in accordance with the Highway Code or the law, generally speaking it was done through stupidity, through want of fore-thought, or from the gambling instinct of taking a chance. But as a pedestrian one was not concentrating; one could not walk about London all day wondering whether one was going to be killed. He himself had twice recently stepped off the pavement right into the traffic. Legislation would not cure forgetfulness. Many accidents to pedestrians were due to forgetfulness, and some physical obstacle was needed to call such persons to their senses. If they had to walk five yards to get round a guard rail or even climb over it, they were reminded that they were going into traffic.