Despite doing everything right – crossing the street at a recently re-engineered, fully lit, marked crosswalk – a 21 year-old woman was struck by a taxi and injured Monday afternoon.
At just before 5:30 p.m., a 2008 Prius cab turning left onto Interurban Road from Burnside Road, struck a woman who had activated the pedestrian walkway and was three-quarters of the way across the road when she was clipped.
“I guess (the driver) perhaps didn’t see the pedestrian or felt that this was a golden opportunity to slip through traffic, not realizing that everybody had stopped for the pedestrian,” said Saanich police Sgt. Dean Jantzen.
The impact caused fracture-like injuries to her lower leg ankle area, as well as a bump on her head.
Investigators towed the taxi for inspection. It underwent a mechanical inspection and officers are reviewing the internal taxi video.
The driver was ticketed $138 for failing to yield to a yellow flashing light at a crosswalk.
“It’s an excellent reminder about all of our responsibilities. Not just as drivers, but those as pedestrians," Jantzen said.
"In this particular case, the pedestrian appears to have done everything that she should have and could have and she was still struck, which shows how vulnerable you are as a pedestrian, especially with the change in season.”
Jantzen recommends walkers and runners wear reflective clothing or LED lights during times of lower visibility.
nnorth@saanichnews.com