Walking through a parking lot seems innocent enough. You walk from the door to your favorite local business to your parked car, and in that time, you expect nothing to go wrong, which is why too few consider parking lot safety. Believe it or not, many vehicle-related injuries occur in parking lots.
Thankfully, it is entirely possible to increase parking lot safety for pedestrians. For starters, you may reduce traffic in front of stores or, at the very least, slow traffic using traffic calming solutions, like signs and speed bumps.
Elsewhere, pedestrians may educate themselves to ensure we all stay safe walking through parking lots year-round.
Safety Tips for Pedestrians
As a pedestrian, learning all about various safety tips for parking lots can help reduce the risk of severe injury or worse. It will help if you remain cautious of vehicles backing in or backing out of parking spaces or reckless drivers who fly through parking lots without a care in the world.
Here are a few safety tips for parking lots to help you stay safe:
- Remain aware and alert of your surroundings, with your head up and eyes open. Do not lose yourself in a phone or book.
- Always look both ways while crossing lanes and use the provided crosswalk and sidewalks for additional safety.
- Avoid any areas where oncoming drivers cannot see you.
The next time you step foot in a parking lot, take a look around and examine your surroundings. You’ll note many motorists are pulling in or out without looking for anyone walking behind them. Ensure your safety by committing our safety tips to mind.
How Motorists Can Protect Pedestrians
Pedestrians in parking lots are nothing new. As a motorist, your number one goal behind the wheel is not to get from point A to point B. It is safety. As the driver, you’re in control of a multi-ton piece of machinery. A pedestrian stands no chance, even at speeds around 15 miles-per-hour. That’s why, in parking lots, it is recommended that drivers reduce their speed to 10 miles-per-hour. If it’s raining, snowing, or icy out, slow down even further.
Ensuring everyone is safe in parking lots is not solely the job of the pedestrian. It would be best to improve your parking lot safety awareness to avoid an accident in this day and age when everyone is so busy with their day-to-day.
Here are a few parking lot safety tips as a motorist:
- Whenever possible, use a pull-through parking space instead of reversing out of one blindly.
- Slow down whenever entering, leaving, or driving through a parking lot.
- In parking garages, use extra caution, as sightlines are drastically reduced.
It’s easy to lose yourself when you get behind the wheel. You’re focused on operating your vehicle safely, not on every pedestrian around you in the parking lot. In such a situation, it’s best to slow down and honestly examine your surroundings. Do not get caught up in everything going on inside the vehicle, and remember to look both ways before you pull in or out of a spot.
Improve Your Parking Lot
As a business owner with a parking lot out front, it is your responsibility to provide a safe space for both motorists and pedestrians. You want to guarantee safety in parking lots. You can do so by improving your parking lot through regular maintenance and the use of traffic calming solutions, like signs.
- Upgrade Lighting — Reduce the chance of both pedestrians and motorists traveling through your parking lot with reduced vision by upgrading the lighting.
- Car Stops — Add in high-quality car stops (plastic or rubber) to ensure vehicles remain in their parking spot and do not drive over the median.
- Invest — Whether you use chalk lines, car stops, or other parking lot supplies designed to keep vehicles in line and safe, invest in useful products before it is too late.
Often, business owners will implement signs imploring drivers to slow down. If motorists fail to adhere to such signage, consider investing in speed humps beside each sign. A physical warning jolt will wake up any driver who focuses on flying through.
When it comes to keeping your parking lot safe, or, as a pedestrian, walking through a parking lot, TransLine is the trusted source for all traffic calming solutions and parking lot supplies. We help business owners create a safe environment out front of their store for shoppers to go about their business. Now is the time to invest in everyone’s safety!
