Pedestrians in Dark Clothing Crash

This collision between a vehicle and two pedestrians dressed in dark clothing takes place at the intersection of Huntingdon Road and Gladwin Road in Abbotsford. It was dark, raining heavily and occurred in an unlit rural area. Sarbjit Parmar and her two childen were crossing Huntingdon northbound in a marked crosswalk when Ms. Parmar and her son were struck by a vehicle driven by Harold Rink.

View of the Collision Scene

The Parmar Family

Mrs. Parmar, along with her son and daughter were walking back to their car following a school concert. They walked along Huntingdon Road until they reached the intersection of Gladwin Road. A car was visible approaching at a distance, so they crossed the road in the marked crosswalk at a normal walking speed.

Mrs. Parmar and her son were struck by the driver of that car when they were in the second half of the crosswalk.

Description of Dark Clothing Worn by Pedestrians

[5] Ms. Parmar was wearing a knee length “silver” jacket with a black dress, black leggings, and black leather boots. Both her children were wearing dark clothing, except that her son had a white patka on his head and was carrying a pink teddy bear, but it is not known where he was carrying it.

Mr. Rink

Mr. Rink approached the crosswalk at about 50 km/h with his headlights on low beam because it was easier to see than if the headlights were on high beam. He said that he had a sight distance of about 30 to 40 feet. He knew that he needed to scan the sides of the road but did not because he needed to see ahead.

He did not see the Parmars in time to avoid colliding with them.

The Court

Madam Justice Norell examined the circumstances of the crash. She included the driver using low beam headlights and the pedestrians being dressed in dark clothing as well as entering the crosswalk without having determined the speed of the approaching vehicle and whether it would stop or not in her decision:

There is a very high standard of care on a driver approaching a marked crosswalk. I find that Mr. Rink failed to keep a proper look out and yield the right of way to Ms. Parmar while she was in the crosswalk. While I accept that the rain made visibility more difficult, I find Ms. Parmar was there to be seen.

Liability for the Collision

In the judgment Mr. Rink bore the majority of the liability at 75%. The ultimate settlement for Ms. Parmar's injuryies was $573,916.45.

Forensic Considerations

Safe speed for a sight distance of 40 feet (12m) is about 20 km/h. This allows the driver 1.5 seconds for perception and reaction and then stopping.

The collision rate for pedestrians crossing from a driver's left to right (this case) can be as much as twice that of pedestrians walking from right to left. This is a consequence of the headlight beam pattern.

Standards for low beam headlights require at least 30m of forward visibility on level road in dry conditions.

Drivers, particularly older ones, have reduced ability to identify pedestrians at night, with older drivers identifying only 48% to 59% of pedestrians compared to 75% to 94% for younger drivers.

The clothing a pedestrian wears has a major impact; pedestrians in black clothing are much harder to see, with only 5% of drivers identifying a black-clad pedestrian when using low beams and facing glare. In contrast, pedestrians wearing retro reflective clothing that depicts biological motion are identified by up to 94% of drivers.

Learn More

• Read the reasons for judgment - Parmar v Rink
• Pedestrian visibility at night: Effects of pedestrian clothing, driver age, and headlamp beam setting

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