Fresno Police warn about pedestrian safety

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Jaywalking, wearing dark clothing at night, not using crosswalks - these are only a few of the problems Fresno police's traffic division sees on a daily basis.

"Is it really worth it? Are you so busy that you can't take 10 seconds out of your day to make sure that you look both ways before crossing the street?" says officer Dominic Morini.

Just two months into 2020, Fresno Police have responded to more than a dozen crashes involving pedestrians.

The most recent was on Wednesday morning in southwest Fresno near California and Thorne.

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A woman walking in the roadway was hit by a driver that didn't see her.

One of the biggest problem areas police see is downtown near Ventura and G Street.

Outside of six deadly crashes in Fresno County, police have responded to nine fatal crashes. Four involved pedestrians.

Morini says that's a significant decline for the city, compared to nine pedestrian fatalities this time last year.

"90 percent of our 20 total pedestrian fatalities last year were adults. The majority of those adults were either under the influence or found at fault," says Morini.

The department is using state and federal grants through the office of traffic safety to increase visibility through saturation patrols, DUI checkpoints, and pedestrian enforcement patrols.