Walking is an important mode of transportation. Safety at crosswalks can be increased when crosswalk users and drivers understand their responsibilities.
What is a crosswalk?
- A marked crosswalk is any place designated by signs or road striping for crossing a roadway.
- An unmarked crosswalk exists where there are no signs or stripes on the roadway designating it, but where a sidewalk exists. It is the area extending out from the sidewalk across the roadway.
- Either type of crosswalk may exist at an intersection or mid-block.
Who may use a crosswalk?
- Pedestrians
- Persons in wheelchairs or disability scooters
- Bicycles
- Electric scooters
- Segways
- Personal delivery vehicles
Driver responsibilities
- Drivers must yield or stop to avoid a collision in all circumstances.
- Drivers must yield or stop for a person or device in a crosswalk and cannot pass another vehicle that has stopped at the crosswalk.
- NOTE: A person is in a crosswalk when they have left the curb and are in the gutter/pan or have entered the roadway.
- Drivers turning at a traffic sign or signal must yield to people or devices legally in a crosswalk over which the driver intends to travel.
- Drivers must yield to people or devices on a sidewalk before crossing the sidewalk.
- Drivers have those same responsibilities at crosswalks for shared use paths.
Crosswalk user responsibilities
- A person should avoid entering a crosswalk if a vehicle is so close that it will be difficult for the driver to yield.
- When crossing at an intersection with a traffic signal:
- Only cross when the “walk” signal is on.
- Continue crossing to the sidewalk or refuge island if the signal switches to “don’t walk.”
- Do not begin crossing on a “don’t walk” signal.
- Only cross when facing a green light if there is no “walk / don’t walk” signal.
- Crosswalk users crossing the street from a shared path follow the same rules as a crossing at any other crosswalk at an intersection.
- Bicyclists using a shared use path with signs or signals must obey any signs or signals before crossing a sidewalk or entering the street if there is no sidewalk. Then a bicyclist is to use the crosswalk the same way they would use any other crosswalk.
- If crossing at a location other than a crosswalk, a person must yield to motor vehicles.
Downloadable poster on crosswalk rules.
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