RSSThe 3/4th Pedestrian Dash Principle
Jan 14
Only in the Philippines (I think)…
I just cant understand what drives pedestrian to make a sudden dash to cross the road but stop at about 3/4ths of the road. I know that normal people by instinct have a tendency to fear being hit by an oncoming vehicle so I cant for the life of me fathom why crossing pedestrians always stop at that specific point of crossing. Three-fourths of the road means that you an approaching vehicle will not just clip you but hit you head-on. The safe zones (if there are any) is halfway, where the vehicles of both lanes can afford to leave unused, and at the other side of the road. Stopping anywhere else is a death wish.
I initially thought that it was because people are slowing down from their mad dash to cross the road but I dont see the point of slowing down so your body is at the dead center of the approaching vehicle. It would be safer to slowdown after you have reached the other side of the road unless there is not enough sidewalk to perform the slowdown. Seeing this behavior frequently shows that this is not an isolated case to a specific location. I have seen it in the cities as well as in the not-so-developed parts of the country. I have seen this behavior in people of varying age, gender and sexual preferences. There is some logic in all this craziness but I am at wits end trying to figure it out. Anybody notices this behavior and want to help me puzzle this out?
ciao!