Toddler dies on Dual Carriageway
Discussion
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/berkshire/3805571.stm
Just three years old.
bbc said:
Toddler hit on dual carriageway
A three-year-old boy has died after being hit by a car as he walked onto a lane of a dual carriageway.
The toddler was on lane one of the A412 Uxbridge Road in Slough when he was hit by a blue Peugeot 306. Police believe someone else may have been with him.
He was taken to Wexham Park Hospital in Slough after the accident on Sunday at 2040 BST, but died from his injuries in the early hours of Monday.
Police expected to release the boy's name later.
Two family liaison officers are visiting his family on Monday afternoon to find out more about the toddler's last hours.
A Thames Valley Police spokeswoman said: "The circumstances of the collision are under investigation but we cannot release any more information at present."
Anyone who witnessed the crash is urged to call Pc David Smailes at Thames Valley Police.
Just three years old.
gRsf12 said:
Does that matter? What the f are the parents/guardians doing letting him out of sight/easy reach near such a road - any road - at that age?
Agreed! The only point I was trying to make is that that road (with two scameras on it, FWIW) isn't a standard DC, which isn't what the report would have you believe.
It's quite possible he toddled out of someone's gate and straight onto the road. Sure, someone should've been watching him - and at that time of the evening too! - but my point here is that there's a pretty good chance it wasn't the driver's fault. It's not a 70 limit and there are scameras around which clearly failed to save his life. All the report says is that he was killed on a DC - which will automatically have the pro-scamera types baying for the driver's blood.
Gazboy said:
Just looked on the map, it's labeled up as a 'proper' DC, and iirc it has a central reservation
Nope. It's standard DC all the way from the Crooked Billet and on to the second set of traffic lights. (This bit runs between Black Park and Langley Park.) The first set of lights is to allow a junction to join from a residential area set back off the road, and the second set almost immediately afterwards is at the junction which takes you to the hospital and Stoke Poges direction.
Then there's another set of lights and the limit changes to a 40, with lights at regular intervals all along it until you get to Tesco's and the big roundabout on the A4. I think there's a central reservation (the scameras are there - they're the ones that can face either direction) but the limit is definitely 40.
>> Edited by SGirl on Tuesday 15th June 12:01
PetrolTed said:
Let's not jump to conclusions.
Habit, sorry. It always seems to be these cases where the kid is always 'cherished' and 'lovely' and 'everyone looks after each other round here'. It later transpires that the parents haven't known where they've been for the last 6-12 hours, believing them to be 'with friends' or 'round the corner' when in reality they are both under 20 (25 at most) sat in the pub or watching Euro '04 (or similar) and come complete with Essex-boy/gangsta speech, baseball caps and white pikey jackets.:rant:
Sorry if I'm wrong in this case, but that's why I jump to conclusions in cases like this.
SGirl, I appreciated your original post about the limits and thought my response may come across a bit personal, but I thought the road (especially the style of road) more relevant than the limit.
I have a (fast) four year old and would not let him out of reach near a 40-dual, even a quiet or empty one, carry him near anything faster and always keep him to the inside if walking by a road in residential 30s etc. We live in a short quiet cul-de-sac in which he only plays if I am on the front to watch and/or play with him. Any other time he is behind locked gates which he cannot climb over. Should I have lived fronting a normal road he would still be behind locked gates. He is also pretty speed aware and has a natural inclination towards cars and bikes so is very aware of them, which can only help us when it comes to road safety with him.
gRsf12 said:
SGirl, I appreciated your original post about the limits and thought my response may come across a bit personal, but I thought the road (especially the style of road) more relevant than the limit.
I have a (fast) four year old and would not let him out of reach near a 40-dual, even a quiet or empty one, carry him near anything faster and always keep him to the inside if walking by a road in residential 30s etc. We live in a short quiet cul-de-sac in which he only plays if I am on the front to watch and/or play with him. Any other time he is behind locked gates which he cannot climb over. Should I have lived fronting a normal road he would still be behind locked gates. He is also pretty speed aware and has a natural inclination towards cars and bikes so is very aware of them, which can only help us when it comes to road safety with him.
Sure, I agree with you 100%. Our scenario is very similar, except SBaby is only 16 months old. We live in a cul-de-sac and he's never allowed out of the (locked) front gate without adult supervision. He has no concept of speed or cars as dangerous objects yet, but he does know he can cry as much as he likes
but he doesn't go out of the front gate without someone with him. I was just trying to offer a second view on the situation. Accidents do happen and it's terrible that in this case a child was killed. I just don't think people should jump to the conclusions that a) the driver must've been speeding (or even just doing 70) as it was a DC, or b) the child was wandering unsupervised down a DC in the middle of nowhere.
It's quite possible the toddler may have just wandered out of the front gate and straight into the path of a car, or pulled away from someone holding his hand and out into the carriageway - we don't know. Kids do stupid things sometimes. The job of parents is to protect them from themselves, as much as anything else. But sometimes accidents can't be avoided - mostly they don't end in tragedy, but occasionally they do.
Davel is right - driver error or parent error, the outcome is still the same. Poor little chap. I just hope there's not a witchhunt to find the person "to blame". Unless, of course, there's demonstrable negligence on the part of either driver or parent, but that's a different story entirely...
>> Edited by SGirl on Tuesday 15th June 12:32
You want to wrap your kids in cotton wool and protect them from the world, but things like this can happen in a second, whatever the cause.
To have to bury your own child must be the most unbearable thing in the world for any parent to have to go through and it just reminds us on how lucky we are that our children grow into adulthood.
Mind you, now that three of mine are adults, I wish I'd had my vasectomy before I married...
The hell that all those people involved are going through is unimaginable
To have to bury your own child must be the most unbearable thing in the world for any parent to have to go through and it just reminds us on how lucky we are that our children grow into adulthood.
Mind you, now that three of mine are adults, I wish I'd had my vasectomy before I married...
The hell that all those people involved are going through is unimaginable
There's nothing like a bit of paranoia to keep kids safe (in general). I don't assume to know the details and it's clearly very sad.
However:
My daughter (8) has just been allowed out to play on the Flags (The Pink Pavings or the pinkies as she calls them) at the end of our quiet cul-de-sac unsupervised. She is under very strict rules about staying within a particular zone and staying off the Road. And is never more than 100 metres from the house.
3 things amaze me!
1) A child who still wears nappies comes to call for her. I have yet to meet the parents, but I did see the father taking his 3 kids in the car, and none of them had a seat belt, but hey it's not my kids.
2) Small Children, who are riding bikes with sabilisers on the road. No parents to be seen.
3) Parents of other children who also live in our cul-de-sac (approx 26 semi's) do not treat the road like a 'play street' but prefer to see if they can reach the 30 mph limit, before then get to the end.
There's nought so stupid as folk !
However:
My daughter (8) has just been allowed out to play on the Flags (The Pink Pavings or the pinkies as she calls them) at the end of our quiet cul-de-sac unsupervised. She is under very strict rules about staying within a particular zone and staying off the Road. And is never more than 100 metres from the house.
3 things amaze me!
1) A child who still wears nappies comes to call for her. I have yet to meet the parents, but I did see the father taking his 3 kids in the car, and none of them had a seat belt, but hey it's not my kids.
2) Small Children, who are riding bikes with sabilisers on the road. No parents to be seen.
3) Parents of other children who also live in our cul-de-sac (approx 26 semi's) do not treat the road like a 'play street' but prefer to see if they can reach the 30 mph limit, before then get to the end.
There's nought so stupid as folk !
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