I just might be the person you'll kill because, when I'm a pedestrian, I follow the law. The law in California clearly states that, unless otherwise posted, there are legal crosswalks that are unmarked. That's right, someone could be stepping out to cross a street -- even when there ain't a drop of paint on the asphalt -- and the law requires that you stop for them. Where are these unmarked crosswalks? They're at intersections where the cross street is perpendicular (a 90-degree angle) to the other street and there's no traffic light or other signs prohibiting you from crossing there. Exactly where is the unmarked sidewalk? To make it easy for you, just imagine that the sidewalks continue into the intersection. Follow the line of the sidewalk and you'll find yourself in a legal, unmarked crosswalk.
Here in Burbank, the police love to set up just this situation. The have a plainclothes cops casually walk into such an intersection -- always making sure that the cars coming their way have ample time to see them and to stop. Most of the stupid drivers believe that, if there ain't no line, there's no crime -- but they're wrong when the drive past the officer. Just down the street is a motor officer just waiting to nab the driver.
Just imagine that I'm saving you the cost of a moving violation by telling you this. Or, even better, imagine that maybe I'm saving you from the agony you'll feel when you kill someone.
And while we're talking about crossing busy streets, did you know that there are times that you can cross the street in mid-block and other times when you cannot? It's true. Here's how it works:
If you're not in a marked or unmarked crosswalk, you NEVER have the right-of-way as a pedestrian in California. You can cross at your own risk, but you cannot cause a driver to slow down or stop for you. There's one situation, however, in which you cannot cross the street at all. That's when there's a traffic signal at both ends of the block. That means you must walk to the corner to cross at the legal traffic signal. Here's the thing to look for: If the place you want to cross has at least one intersection at either end that has no traffic signal, then you can race across the street -- but without a right of way. If there are traffic signals at both ends of the block, you must walk to one of them to cross.
Remember that, as a driver, you can never run someone down just because they don't have the right of way. Even if they're breaking the damned law, you should slow down or come to a complete stop if you'd otherwise hit the stupid fools.
Here in Burbank, the police love to set up just this situation. The have a plainclothes cops casually walk into such an intersection -- always making sure that the cars coming their way have ample time to see them and to stop. Most of the stupid drivers believe that, if there ain't no line, there's no crime -- but they're wrong when the drive past the officer. Just down the street is a motor officer just waiting to nab the driver.
Just imagine that I'm saving you the cost of a moving violation by telling you this. Or, even better, imagine that maybe I'm saving you from the agony you'll feel when you kill someone.
And while we're talking about crossing busy streets, did you know that there are times that you can cross the street in mid-block and other times when you cannot? It's true. Here's how it works:
If you're not in a marked or unmarked crosswalk, you NEVER have the right-of-way as a pedestrian in California. You can cross at your own risk, but you cannot cause a driver to slow down or stop for you. There's one situation, however, in which you cannot cross the street at all. That's when there's a traffic signal at both ends of the block. That means you must walk to the corner to cross at the legal traffic signal. Here's the thing to look for: If the place you want to cross has at least one intersection at either end that has no traffic signal, then you can race across the street -- but without a right of way. If there are traffic signals at both ends of the block, you must walk to one of them to cross.
Remember that, as a driver, you can never run someone down just because they don't have the right of way. Even if they're breaking the damned law, you should slow down or come to a complete stop if you'd otherwise hit the stupid fools.
As a transit professional, I found this infomation enlightening and interestting. We are very careful not to place bus stops in places that encourage people to cross a street mid block. This reminds me of a 1960's NYC public service ad that ran on radio & TV "Cross at the Green not in between"!
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