Category: Bicycle safety

Autumn Changes – Advanced Pedestrian Lights and the new Traffic Safety Act

by Mark Raftus

As summer moves into fall, many seasonal changes take place. Children return to school, days are not as warm or long, leaves change color and we prepare for the long winter ahead.

Change is a constant and quite often, is for the good. The positive aspect of change can be seen in recent developments implemented by HRM and the Provincial government aimed at protecting pedestrians and motorists in Nova Scotia.

HRM statistics reveal in the first eight months of 2018 there were 120 vehicle-pedestrian collisions in HRM with 61 percent of them happening in a crosswalk. In an effort to improve safety for these pedestrians, HRM has installed what they refer to as “advanced pedestrian lights” at six high-pedestrian traffic intersections in the City – five in Halifax and one in Dartmouth.
Allowing Pedestrians a Head Start
These new lights came into effect on Thursday, October 11, 2018. How they work is the green pedestrian “walking man” signal comes on for several seconds before the green traffic light changes permitting vehicle traffic to proceed ahead through an intersection or turn. In this way, pedestrians are given a head start to proceed forward into the crosswalk and establish their presence. Vehicle drivers will see the pedestrians more readily and allow them to complete their right-of-way crossing. HRM advises they will monitor this initiative and if it works to reduce collisions HRM will add more of these advanced pedestrian lights at other intersections in the City.

4 Reasons to Hire a Lawyer Immediately after a Wrongful Death and Why you Don’t have to Worry about making a mistake

by John McKiggan

By Brian Hebert

I wrote this article after seeing news of yet another fatal injury in our Province. I was particularly saddened because the victim was a fellow cyclist and just a teenager.

It’s very difficult to focus on anything immediately after the death of someone you love. The grief is unbearable and all of a sudden there is so much to do: contacting the rest if the family, contacting g friends, preparing an obituary, making funeral arrangements, making insurance claims for funeral expenses, making visitation arrangements.

Do bicycle helmets prevent head injuries? The answer may not be as obvious as you think.

by John McKiggan

Protect your noggin

If you were given the option of being hit on the head with or without a helmet, which would you choose? Wearing a bicycle helmet reduces the risk of head injury by approximately 85-percent. The choice seems obvious doesn’t it?

If the choice is so clear then why do one-third of Nova Scotian’s still not wear helmets when cycling? According to Statistics Canada approximately 35% of Nova Scotia’s still refuse to wear bicycle helmets on a regular basis.

Get Your Kids Back-to-School Safely!

by John McKiggan

It’s that time again! Tomorrow is the first day of school and lots of eager (or not so eager) kids will be heading back to school.

As an injury lawyer in Nova Scotia, I have dealt with countless tragic cases where children have been injured, many of them in and around schools. Here are a few tips for parents to make sure the first day back (and every other day during the school year) is a safe one.

Whichever method your children use to get to school there are a number of safety considerations to remember.

Injuries Increase as Temperatures Rise

by John McKiggan

According to a recent report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information an average of 45 Canadians are hospitalized every day in the summer as a result of injuries from wheel and water sports.

“Summer is a great time to be active and enjoy the outdoors, but it is also a peak period for motor vehicle injuries and trauma related to wheel and water sports,” said Greg Webster, director of Primary Health Care Information at CIHI.

CIHI has been collecting data for the last 10 years. Their investigation show that cycling injuries account for half of all sport and recreation related hospital admissions.