And if the pedestrian is a child?

If a child is old enough to be crossing the street without an adult present (holding their hand), then they're old enough to be looking both ways before crossing.

That was a kindergarten lesson, and in my experience, those kids tend to be better about it than most people are when they're older.

If they're not going to do that, what is stopping them from just wandering into a road nowhere near a traffic light anyway?

My own child is a runner and until she was six or so it was honestly terrifying to go outside with her. I want to live somewhere letting go of a four year old's hand isn't a death sentence. Incidentally this is what Anne hidalgo says she wants for Paris and it seems like a useful heuristic.

I don't know if that place exists like near any road they should cross safely, otherwise you just need to live where there is no car

>Is it really too much to ask for pedestrians to look left before crossing?

Yes, is that even a real question? A pedestrian with a walk signal should be able to cross without looking for traffic. They shouldn't need to anticipate that the car approaching a red light is going to just roll into the crosswalk without stopping.

I disagree on that, humans are humans and they make mistakes. When all the cars are automated, we could do that, otherwise it's just dangerous.

> there are pedestrians who jaywalk blithely like Mary Poppins

if this is a possibility for anyone who gets behind the wheel of an SUV

then perhaps we should raise the bar for licensing drivers until they all can handle such a regular occurrence

I am extremely wary of drivers. Years ago--before cell phones were ubiquitous--I saw a car around here start to pull out to a fire truck, one that had its lights and sirens goin.

Having said that, pedestrian wariness can carry one only so far.