Defensive Driving within Your Complex

In the past year, we've had about six  significant traffic accidents on the grounds of our apartment complex.  As a casual observer, it's difficult to identify the root cause of each accident.  However, I suspect there are a few contributors to each accident.

1.  Foreign National Drivers.
2.  Young Drivers.
3.  Wet Roads.
4.  Distraction.

Three accidents took out trees and shrubs, one accident left a bumper and broken glass just inside the gate, and one spectacular accident took out a guard rail, sent a car airborne, and significant damaged a parked SUV.  These accidents are scary because we have many pedestrians within our complex.  Someone may get hurt.

While speed limits are low, you have to drive defensively in an apartment complex.  Since the entire complex is basically a parking lot with a twisting road through it, there are plenty of people trying to get in an out of spaces.  You also have children and pets darring from between parked cars.

In our complex, we also have a large number of foreign guest workers who walk for recreation.  They are completely clueless of how pedestrians act in the United States.  Suffice it too say there is a whole family and a baby stroller behind every blind corner.  If you add in all the joggers with iTunes impaired hearing, you have a disaster waiting for someone to roar around a corner too fast.  Slow down and don't even think about toiching your cell phone while driving here!

It's enough to make me want speed bumps!

Slow Down When Driving in An Apartment Complex

The demographics of American apartment complexes are changing.  Many complexes host large communities of guest workers from India.  These workers are not familiar with American customs regarding cars and pedestrians.  They also tend to walk around a lot in an apartment complex.

Delhi Traffic By David Bleasdale from England [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0) or CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Foreign guest workers may not walk against traffic.  They also may not avoid blind corners.  They also tend not to use the available sidewalks.  Since they are often working from home with offshore personnel in India, they may be up and walking about much later than typical Americans.  Since they may not have a car or they may rely on friends for transportation, they tend to walk to work and to stores.

On many occasions, I have rounded a blind corner to find an extended family of immigrants or guest workers complete with grandfather, grandmother, mom, dad, and baby in stroller.  Needless to say, if you are driving in an apartment complex, watch your speed and be prepared for the unexpected.