Walk down the hill from Redmont Park and you’re in some of the busiest pedestrian territory in Alabama. UAB’s campus and hospitals pull in tens of thousands of students, patients and workers. Five Points South has restaurants and pubs that stay busy late. Downtown has Railroad Park, Regions Field and office towers. All of that foot traffic shares the streets with people driving to work, looking for parking or rushing to the hospital. Pedestrians lose those encounters every time.
Where it happens
Many pedestrian crashes in Birmingham happen in a familiar set of places.
- Around the UAB medical district, on University Boulevard, Sixth Avenue South and the cross streets between them.
- In Five Points South, especially on weekend nights.
- Along wide, fast roads like Third Avenue West, Bessemer Road and Green Springs Highway, where crosswalks are far apart.
- Near bus stops served by the Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority, where riders cross to catch a bus.
- In parking decks and lots, where drivers back up without looking.
The crosswalk rules, briefly
Alabama’s rules of the road generally require drivers to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks, marked or unmarked, when there’s no signal controlling the crossing. The walker’s side of the rule is set out in Ala. Code ยง 32-5A-212. Away from a marked crosswalk, and away from the unmarked intersection crossing the statute treats as a crosswalk, a walker has to yield to vehicles already on the roadway. If a pedestrian tunnel or an overhead crossing is available at that point, the same yield rule applies. Where two neighboring intersections already have signals, crossing is limited to a marked crosswalk. Crossing an intersection on the diagonal is allowed only if official traffic-control devices say so, and then only in the way those devices direct. Drivers still have a duty to watch out for pedestrians and avoid hitting them, wherever they’re crossing. Signals with walk lights add another layer, and turning drivers often fail to yield to people who have the walk signal.
The hard part. Contributory negligence
Here’s where Alabama gets tough on people who are walking. Under the state’s contributory negligence rule, if the pedestrian was negligent in any way that helped cause the crash, an ordinary negligence claim can be blocked. Insurers use this aggressively in pedestrian cases. Expect to hear arguments like these.
- The pedestrian crossed mid-block or against the signal.
- The pedestrian was looking at a phone or wearing headphones.
- The pedestrian wore dark clothing at night.
- The pedestrian had been drinking.
These arguments aren’t automatic winners. The defense has to prove the pedestrian was negligent and that it helped cause the injury. A driver who was speeding, drunk or blowing through a light may also have acted wantonly, and contributory negligence isn’t a defense to a wantonness claim. The doctrine of last clear chance can sometimes help when a driver saw the pedestrian in danger in time to stop and didn’t. All of this depends on the facts, which is why evidence collected early matters.
Evidence that tends to matter
- Video. The UAB area, downtown and Five Points are full of cameras on businesses, parking decks and buildings. Footage is often overwritten within days, so ask fast or have someone ask for you.
- Signal timing. Whether the walk signal was on can decide a case.
- Lighting. Photos of the scene at the same time of night show what a driver could actually see.
- Witnesses. Other people waiting to cross, bus riders and restaurant staff often see these crashes.
- The crash report. BPD charges $10 for a copy. See our report guide.
Whose insurance pays
A pedestrian hit by a car usually makes a claim against the driver’s liability insurance. When that driver carries little or nothing, the UM and UIM coverage on your own car policy can sometimes reach a crash where you were on foot, depending on how the policy is written. Any medical payments coverage you carry can chip in on bills too. People who don’t own a car sometimes have coverage through a household member’s policy. Read our UM guide for more.
Hit by a bus or city vehicle
If a transit bus or other government vehicle hit you, notice deadlines may be much shorter than two years. For the City of Birmingham, tort claims have to be presented to the city clerk within six months. Public transit agencies and other public bodies can have their own rules. See our guide to claims against the city, and talk with a lawyer quickly.
After a pedestrian crash
Pedestrian injuries are often serious, including broken legs and pelvises, head injuries and internal injuries. If you were taken to UAB Hospital or another emergency room, you may not remember much. Ask a family member to help gather paperwork, take photos of the scene and write down what witnesses said. Get the names of the officers who responded.
Keep every medical bill and note every day of missed work. Alabama allows the jury to hear evidence that insurance paid medical bills, so organized documentation of what you paid and owe helps. See our guide on medical bills after a crash.
Deadlines
Two years from the crash for most injury lawsuits. Six months for notice to a city. Two years from the date of death for wrongful death. The deadline table has the details.
This guide is general information about Alabama law and isn’t legal advice. Pedestrian cases in Alabama are often won or lost on fault, so talking with a lawyer before you talk with the driver’s insurer is worth considering. You can browse pedestrian accident attorneys near Birmingham.