With the arrival of darker days and worsening weather comes a rise in accidents involving pedestrians. Brussels Mobility is reminding road users to be more alert, especially in the mornings and evenings.
In October and November, when the sun starts to rise later and set earlier, pedestrian accidents rise by 28% in Brussels, the region's mobility agency warned.
"Less daylight in the morning and evening means that vulnerable road users are even more exposed to the risks associated with darkness," Brussels Mobility noted in a statement.
"In traffic, risks are not evenly distributed," it added, referring to the fact that in most cases, cyclists and pedestrians are hit by cars. "It is therefore essential that motorists respect the infrastructure for other road users and moderate their speed."
However, it is also alerting pedestrians and cyclists, especially children and young people travelling to school early in the dark, by offering some tips for being as visible as possible in traffic.
Invisible in dark clothing
Some visibility equipment is compulsory, including a white light and "cat eye" at the front and a red light and "cat eye" at the back of a bicycle, a white or orange reflector on the pedals of a bicycle and reflectors on the wheels or a reflective strip on the tyres.
Much of a person's visibility also depends on the clothing they wear. Someone in dark clothing can only be seen by someone in a car when they are 20 metres away. The visibility for someone with light-coloured clothing, meanwhile, increases to 50 metres. When the person in question is equipped with reflective gear, however, motorist should already be able to spot them from 150 metres away.
Brussels Mobility is will organise events on Thursday at 15 locations in the region, such as Place du Bourse, Place Bockstael, Brussels Central and Simonis, among others to make people in traffic aware of visibility in the city.
It is also inviting primary schools in the region to register for the Visibility XP at the end of November. During this interactive experience, fifth and sixth-grade pupils are cloaked in the dark of an unused space in Midi metro station to discover which clothes make them most visible.
