Rules of the road spell danger

[Martin Cassini]

At 2.20pm on a day in January 2009, Victoria Johnson, 23, a trainee barrister, was crossing Mile End Road as the green man started to flash. Foysal Ali, 24, a trainee social worker, driving a Ford Ka, saw amber-flashing lights ahead, so he carried on. "She came out of nowhere", he said. His car horn wasn't working, so he was unable to sound a warning, and unable to stop in time. Snaresbrook crown court heard that he was doing 37 in a 30mph zone, and "should have proceeded with caution until the signal changed to green". They also heard that it's against the Highway Code for a pedestrian to cross on a flashing green man. The jury was unanimous in finding Ali guilty of causing death by careless/inconsiderate driving. But Judge Alan Pardoe, QC, spared him an immediate custodial sentence. - From first-hand experience of "accidents" at traffic signals, those weapons of mass distraction, danger and delay, I blame the driver less than I blame a traffic control system which sets the stage for dangerous conflict. Johnson isn't the only victim, though she paid with her life. Her family and friends - well, you can only imagine the desolation. But Ali, too, can be seen as a victim of a dysfunctional system. He will pay for the rest of his life with day and nightmare action replays.