Pedestrians blamed for accidents
Nearly one in 10 road accidents in Attica during the first half of this year was caused by irresponsible behavior by pedestrians, a senior traffic police officer said yesterday, calling for a stricter approach to offenders. The forbearance shown by traffic police officers to pedestrians causes harm, Panayiotis Gogoulos, deputy chief of the Attica traffic police department, told Kathimerini. Traffic police say pedestrians were at fault for 599 of the total 6,517 accidents registered in Attica between January and July. The most frequent offense was pedestrians crossing roads without using designated crossings. Far fewer pedestrians would be knocked over if the law were implemented and fines were imposed, Gogoulos added. People who cross the road where there is no crossing or who disregard a red light can be fined 10,000 drachmas. But traffic policemen almost never fine pedestrians – who live in constant threat from drivers who ignore zebra crossings and red lights.
