Jogger and Runner Accidents in Georgia

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A runner struck by a vehicle on a Georgia road is a pedestrian under the traffic code, and the claim depends on where the runner was in relation to the sidewalk, the shoulder, and the roadway; what care the driver owed a person on foot; and, if the driver did not stop, what the runner’s own uninsured motorist coverage requires.

A Runner Is a Pedestrian

For the Code section that governs where people on foot may be along a road, “the term ‘pedestrian’ means any person afoot and shall include, without limitation, persons standing, walking, jogging, running, or otherwise on foot” (OCGA 40-6-96(a)). The general definition for the traffic title is shorter: any person afoot (OCGA 40-1-1).

Where a Runner Must Run

OCGA 40-6-96 sets an order of places along a road:

  • Where a sidewalk is provided. “Where a sidewalk is provided, it shall be unlawful for any pedestrian to stand or stride along and upon an adjacent roadway unless there is no motor vehicle traveling within 1,000 feet of such pedestrian on such roadway or the available sidewalk presents an imminent threat of bodily injury to such pedestrian” (OCGA 40-6-96(b)).
  • Where there is no sidewalk but there is a shoulder. A pedestrian “standing or striding along and upon a highway shall stand or stride only on the shoulder, as far as practicable from the edge of the roadway” (OCGA 40-6-96(c)).
  • Where there is neither. The pedestrian “shall stand or stride as near as practicable to an outside edge of the roadway, and, if on a two-lane roadway, shall stand or stride only on the left side of the roadway” (OCGA 40-6-96(d)).
  • On the roadway itself. “Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, any pedestrian upon a roadway shall yield the right of way to all vehicles upon the roadway” (OCGA 40-6-96(e)).

Which rule applies depends on the road, and that can be a question for a jury. In Field v. Lowery, 300 Ga. App. 812 (2009), a pedestrian was struck at night on a four-lane highway. By the pedestrian’s account and an independent witness’s, the pedestrian was walking in the direction of traffic about two feet outside the white fog line; the driver’s accident reconstruction expert said the pedestrian was crossing the road. The trial court granted partial summary judgment to the driver on the ground that the pedestrian was not on the proper shoulder. The Court of Appeals reversed: the evidence, including testimony from the driver’s own expert, supported treating the area between the white line and the curb as shoulder, and the left-side rule in subsection (d) governs a two-lane road without a sidewalk or shoulder, not a four-lane road with a shoulder.

For example, imagine a runner on a two-lane county road with no sidewalk and no shoulder. Subsection (d) requires the runner to stay as near as practicable to an outside edge of the roadway and only on the left side. When the road gains a paved shoulder, subsection (c) moves the runner onto the shoulder, as far as practicable from the edge of the roadway, and where a sidewalk begins, subsection (b) keeps the runner off the adjacent roadway unless no vehicle is traveling within 1,000 feet or the sidewalk itself presents an imminent threat of bodily injury.

What a Driver Owes a Runner

Whatever the runner’s position, every driver must use due care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian on any roadway, sound the horn when necessary, and take proper precautions on seeing a child or an obviously confused, incapacitated, or intoxicated person, notwithstanding the traffic chapter’s other provisions (OCGA 40-6-93). In Young v. Kitchens, 228 Ga. App. 870 (1997), a pedestrian walking in the road at night was struck, and the Court of Appeals reversed summary judgment for the driver, holding that the driver’s duty of ordinary care to discover and avoid persons in the roadway left a question for the jury even though the evidence was not strong.

A runner who crosses a road mid-route is governed by the crossing rules. At a crosswalk, a driver must stop and remain stopped for a pedestrian crossing within it in the circumstances OCGA 40-6-91(a) describes; elsewhere, a pedestrian crossing outside a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection must yield to vehicles unless already in the roadway under safe conditions (OCGA 40-6-92(a)).

The runner’s position matters to the recovery because Georgia reduces damages by the injured person’s percentage of fault and bars recovery at 50 percent or more (OCGA 51-12-33).

When the Driver Does Not Stop

A driver involved in an accident that injures or kills a person must stop at the scene or as close to it as possible, give a name, address, and registration number, render reasonable assistance to an injured person, and stay until those duties are met (OCGA 40-6-270(a)). For the runner’s own recovery, a vehicle whose owner or operator is unknown is treated as uninsured under the runner’s uninsured motorist coverage, but recovery requires actual physical contact between that vehicle and the runner or the runner’s property, unless an eyewitness other than the runner corroborates the runner’s account of how it happened (OCGA 33-7-11(b)(2)).

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a runner have to be in a car to use uninsured motorist coverage?
No. The named insured, and a spouse and relatives of either who live in the same household, are insureds whether or not they are in a motor vehicle at the time (OCGA 33-7-11(b)(1)(B)).

What must be reported after a hit-and-run to keep that coverage?
Where the owner or operator is unknown, the insured, or someone on the insured’s behalf, must report the accident as OCGA 40-6-273 requires in order to recover (OCGA 33-7-11(c)). That section calls for immediate notice, by the quickest means of communication, to the local police department inside a municipality, or to the county sheriff or the nearest state patrol office outside one (OCGA 40-6-273).

Can a runner go around a lowered railroad gate or onto a bridge after its signal?
No. A pedestrian may not pass through, around, over, or under a crossing gate or barrier at a railroad grade crossing or bridge while it is closed or being opened or closed, and may not enter or remain on a bridge or its approach beyond the signal, gate, or barrier after a bridge operation signal has been given (OCGA 40-6-96(f), (g)).

What if the injury comes from a broken city sidewalk?
A claim against a city must be presented in writing to the city’s governing authority within six months of the event, stating the time, place, and extent of the injury and the negligence that caused it, before a lawsuit can proceed (OCGA 36-33-5(a), (b)).

  • OCGA 40-6-96(a) through (g); OCGA 40-1-1
  • Field v. Lowery, 300 Ga. App. 812 (2009); Young v. Kitchens, 228 Ga. App. 870 (1997)
  • OCGA 40-6-91(a); OCGA 40-6-92(a); OCGA 40-6-93
  • OCGA 51-12-33
  • OCGA 40-6-270(a); OCGA 40-6-273
  • OCGA 33-7-11(b)(1)(B), (b)(2), (c)
  • OCGA 36-33-5(a), (b)

Disclaimer

This article provides general information about how the Georgia traffic code and fault rules bear on jogger and runner accidents. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Liability and fault depend on the facts of each incident, and the text of the statutes may change. Anyone injured while running should consult a licensed Georgia attorney promptly about the particular situation.

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