Streets throughout the San Francisco area can be dangerous when it comes to motor vehicles interacting with pedestrians. While two cars colliding can have disastrous results, the odds are that much worse when instead of another automobile, a car hits a pedestrian. This is due in large part to the fact that a pedestrian does not have anything acting as a physical barrier to protect one’s body.
Earlier this month a pedestrian who was disabled, and made his way around the city with the help of a wheelchair, died after being hit by a car. The intersection where he was struck, at Market and Octavia, is described as being one of the most dangerous in the city of San Francisco. In a two year period beginning in 2009, the location saw 30 different collisions.
The difficulty drivers have with the intersection is in part attributed to drivers seeking to turn onto the Highway 101 onramp before receiving the go-ahead from the traffic light. Instead, drivers often make an illegal right turn, at times, striking whatever happens to be in their way. The tragic incident occurred shortly after midnight. At the time of the collision the man was on his way home from an evening spent with friends.
The 31-year-old man used a wheel chair as a result of the congenital bone disorder he had. Suffering from osteogenesis imperfect, he was only 3-feet tall. Despite his small stature the man was well known and well liked by many who knew him.
His death is particularly tragic due to how hard he worked while living to make the city’s streets safe for individuals such as himself safe.
Source: The San Francisco Gate, “Man who sought safe streets killed in S.F. crash,” Kurtis Alexander, Nov. 8, 2013
