Play Safe-Play Away from the Road

"Toddlers are pedestrians in the yard anytime they are near their driveway and roadway"

Until the age of 10 or so, children need active touch adult supervision to help them navigate safely through areas where cars travel. Even children who seem to know all the road safety rules will not necessarily remember to follow them. They can easily daydream while crossing a road without an adult and are likely to forget about the traffic when playing with friends and dart out into the road when they get excited. They cannot judge vehicles speed or driving distance and in many cases their size does not allow them to be visible to drivers.

It is important to begin to teach and model safe behaviors around cars when near roads, driveways, on sidewalks and parking lots. For example, always cross at pedestrian crossings. At this age it is more important to always hold a toddler or preschooler's hand when they are near cars, even when you are only in a driveway.

Preventing driveway accidents

• If you can, fence off the driveway or garage so your child cannot run towards or behind a car. Fencing any yards or play areas so your child can't get onto the road is also a good idea.
• Always hold your child's hand near cars - even if it's just around your driveway or walking to the letterbox.
• Double-check where children are before you reverse - they should be either safely belted in the car, or with an adult in plain sight outside the car.
• Talk to your child about what you're doing and why. Explain why you always have to hold hands in the driveway. Children learn about pedestrian safety by watching what you do and hearing why you do it.
• Toddlers tend to move quietly and quickly. They do not realize that cars are dangerous. And they get highly absorbed by whatever they are doing, including chasing a ball behind a car. They often do not stop if you ask them to.
• This is why so many toddlers are hit by cars in their own yards or driveway. Even older children get hurt this way in others driveways because they don't realize that a driveway is a place to stop and look for vehicles exiting or entering a yard even when they are walking on sidewalks.
• Parking lots are similar to driveways in that reversing drivers find it very difficult to see small children behind their cars.

Getting in and out of the car

• Always use the curbside, rear passenger door when putting your child into the vehicle. This way, your child will get used to always getting in and out of the car through the safest door - the one away from traffic.
• If you have a baby and a toddler, keep your toddler safe inside the car while you deal with the baby first. Once out of the car, hold hands with your child and together work out where cars could come from before you walk away from the car. When returning to the car, help the toddler in first as the baby is less likely to move out of sight.

  Going for walks and crossing road

• Children will start to learn by example if you always cross at pedestrian crossings or corners, wait for the lights, and look in every likely direction to check that there are no cars coming.
• Stop at driveways and check that there are no cars reversing or entering.
• Start talking about road safety while your child is still in the stroller. For example, 'Uh oh, car coming. Better wait until it's gone before we cross'. And keep talking about road safety.
• Always hold your toddler's or preschooler's hand when you are crossing roads.
• Even if your child protests or wants to run, tell him he can only cross roads when he's holding your hand, and praise him when he does so without a fuss.
• It is essential to hold a toddler's hand wherever there is traffic or where cars could be, especially where there is:
  • a high volume of traffic
  • narrow with no grass buffer sidewalks or areas with no sidewalks
  • things that block the view - parked cars and trucks, trees, hill crests or crowded footpaths.

As your child becomes a toddler, and later a preschooler, you are likely to be out walking and crossing roads more and more frequently. Even quiet side streets on the way to the local park, a friend's or the local shop can be dangerous. Even sow-moving cars are dangerous. This is the time for adults to be completely aware of road safety.

By around the age of 10, many children have developed the skills required to judge traffic reliably. This includes being able to locate sounds, judge speed or notice oncoming traffic out of the corners of their eyes. Your child is ready to navigate roads safely when he:

• Knows and understands road-safety rules
• Seems to be able to judge road traffic - paying attention to and interpreting the movement of vehicles on the road
• Understands that even though he must follow the road rules, a car might not
• Can choose safe places to cross roads.
• Is able to walk without impulsive movements that may result in a dart out.

Also be aware that while it is "safer" to walk with a group of children for some reasons, research has shown that kids whom walk in groups are at higher risk for pedestrian safety issues because they do not practice as strong of safety practices in the excitement of walking with other children. This does not mean your child should walk alone but rather in the early years an adult may still be needed to walk with a group of kids to monitor motor vehicle safety.

To encourage families to play away from cars, for a limited time we are giving away free backyard play kits with a safety coloring book, beach ball, Frisbee, and pedestrian safety information. To request a kit email janice.williams@carolinashealthcare.org with your name, address and age of children in the family. Limit one per family while supplies last.