43 jaywalkers caught in two TP operations in the city

SINGAPORE – Forty-three jaywalkers were caught in the act by Traffic Police (TP) in an operation on Wednesday (Oct 11) at two locations in the city.

The sting operations, TODAY understands, were conducted at Chin Swee Road and North Bridge Road (towards South Bridge Road and before Crawford Street).

In a press release on Wednesday (Oct 11), Police cautioned against jaywalking as the number of accidents involving jaywalkers spiked 21 per cent in the first half of this year to 161 cases, up from 133 over the same period last year. One third involved elderly pedestrians.

There were a total of 124 accidents involving elderly pedestrians in the first half of the year, which is an 8.9 per cent increase over the same period last year.

What is more worrying is that half the number of fatal accidents from January to June this year involved elderly pedestrians jaywalking, according to police.

“The elderly tend to be more vulnerable than others due to their age and health. Hence, it is important for them not to jaywalk and to take precaution when using the roads,” Police said.

Earlier this year, the TP said the safety of elderly pedestrians has become a key concern for the authorities as accident and fatality rates had both risen about 20 per cent in 2016.

The police emphasised that jaywalking can be prevented and all pedestrians should always use designated pedestrian crossings when crossing roads. Pedestrians should also make themselves more visible to motorists by wearing bright or light-coloured clothes during night time.

“In addition, they should always keep a proper lookout for oncoming vehicles at all times especially when they are crossing the roads, at carparks, carpark entrances and their service roads,” added the police.

As TP continues to educate and engage all road users to promote road safety, TP stressed that all motorists have to “take extra care” to look out for pedestrians on roads.

On Monday, a four-year-old girl was killed by a car along Bukit Batok Central towards Bukit Batok West Avenue 2. Her domestic helper who was with her at the time of the accident is in stable condition at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital.