Submitted by Aiken Jacobsen on
Car accidents and pedestrian accidents can have many causes, including poor or dangerous road design. If a road, highway or intersection is badly-designed it doesn't matter how safely we drive. Accidents will still occur.
One dangerous crosswalk at an intersection here in Sacramento was determined to be the cause of a pedestrian car accident for which the city was held liable. A jury recently decided to award the victim $16 million in damages.
The accident occurred several years ago at a crosswalk near Land Park. A 25-year-old woman was jogging through the crosswalk when she was struck by a car. The jury decided that the city was ultimately at fault for the accident because prominent testimony from public officials revealed that the city knew the intersection was dangerous.
The award amount was so high because the jury felt that the car accident prematurely ended the victim's medical career. At the time of the accident the young woman had just started a residency at UC Davis Medical Center. Though she survived the accident she suffered a traumatic brain injury which has made her unable to perform her duties as a doctor.
Since the accident the Sacramento Department of Transportation has made changes to the crosswalk and intersection at Land Park. It has been converted from a one-way into a single-lane two-way street, and more effective pedestrian traffic signals have been installed. The Sacramento DOT denies that the changes were the result of the accident.
The outcome of this case is a victory, not just for the injured woman, but for all Sacramento residents. When city and county planners endanger lives with poor road design, they must be held accountable for making things right.
Source: ABC News 10 online, "Juror said Sacramento knew crosswalk was dangerous,"30 March 2011
