Bus blind spots

Day 225: Bus blind spots. Decode the visual and audio cues most New Yorkers miss. Week 33 of the year-long curriculum. Here are the rules for this one. Walk through it with me: a Harlem crosstown street in the rain. Here's what keeps you out of trouble. Buses have huge blind spots at the front-right wheel, directly behind, and along the entire passenger side. Stay out of all three. Tomorrow, try running this routine on your real commute. Three things to do. Do 1: Cross behind a bus only after it has pulled away from the stop. Do 2: Make eye contact with the driver before crossing in front. Do 3: Step back from the curb when a bus is pulling in. Three things to avoid. Avoid 1: Walking alongside a bus with its right turn signal on. Avoid 2: Crossing in front of a stopped bus you just exited. Avoid 3: Standing in the front-right blind spot at a red light. Why this matters: Bus drivers can't see the corner of the crosswalk where the wheels track during a right turn — that's where most bus-pedestrian fatalities happen. Safe move: Looking both ways on a one-way street every single time. Covers the wrong-way cyclist, scooter, or driver you did not plan for. Risky move: Crossing a one-way street while only looking the way cars come. Cyclists, scooters, and wrong-way drivers come from the other side too. Safe move: Using the push button at intersections that have one. It often extends the walk phase — more time to finish the crossing safely. Risky move: Walking next to a truck that has its right turn signal on. Truck right turns are the deadliest interaction for pedestrians. Stop and let it pass. Safe move: Pulling out one earbud as you approach an intersection. Restoring your hearing restores most of your situational awareness. Risky move: Crossing while a delivery e-bike is approaching at speed. E-bikes are faster and quieter than they look. Let them pass first. Safe move: Standing behind the tactile strip until the train fully stops. Keeps you outside the danger zone for sway, suction, and the platform gap. Risky move: Darting out from between two parked vans. Drivers cannot see you and you cannot see them. Classic dart-out collision. Safe move: Waiting on the curb until the steady white walker appears. Steady walker is your green light. Cross at a normal pace. Risky move: Standing at the edge of the platform with toes over the yellow strip. A bump or a gust from an approaching train can pull you forward. Stay behind the tactile strip. Safe move: Crossing only at the marked crosswalk even if it adds 20 seconds. Drivers expect pedestrians at corners and almost never expect them mid-block. Risky move: Hopping off the curb to wave down a cab in a moving lane. Drivers behind the cab won't expect a pedestrian in the lane. Wait at the curb. Safe move: Stepping back when a cyclist rings a bell behind you. A bell is a request for space. Giving it prevents a sudden swerve into traffic. Safe move: Walking an extra block to a lit, signaled corner after dark. Lighting plus a signal dramatically cuts your risk at night. Safe move: Pausing audio before stepping into the crosswalk. A second of silence is cheap insurance against the thing you did not see. Risky move: Stepping straight into a bike lane to look for cars. Treat the bike lane as its own crossing. Check it before you step in. Safe move: Waiting a full beat after the light changes before stepping off. Late-runners and last-second turners clear the box in that beat. Risky move: Crossing in front of a stopped school bus that still has its stop arm out. Kids are crossing or about to cross. Wait for the arm to retract. Safe move: Pausing before a turning SUV until the driver makes eye contact. Confirming the driver sees you is the single best habit at a corner. Risky move: Walking out from behind a tall SUV without leaning to look first. Drivers in the next lane can't see you and you can't see them — a classic blind-pull collision. Watch the clip, then decide which of these reads is the safer call for bus blind spots.