The laws of physics disagree.
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I don’t have to imagine, I was in Scotland last year dodging sheep!
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You’re missing the point aintcha.
If I choose to shoot someone for saying something I don’t like, that’s me violating their right to free speech - not “the laws of physics disagreeing” with their right to free speech.
I may be misunderstanding you, but you appear to be contradicting yourself. I’m also not sure whether you are describing a condition that you wish to be true, or feel ought to be true, or whether you believe you are describing a condition that is factually true.
Here you say that pedestrians always have the right way:
In other words, you are stating that pedestrians have the right of way, and vehicles must stop and wait for pedestrians to pass before proceeding.
Here you say the opposite:
In other words, you are stating that vehicles have the right of way, and pedestrians must stop and wait for vehicles to pass before proceeding.
The fact is that pedestrians do not have the legal right of way over vehicles, ever, anywhere, except in crosswalks. Vehicles have no obligation to yield to a pedestrian in the road, ever, anywhere, except in a crosswalk.
Here are the relevant statues from every North American jurisdiction on the Pacific ocean.
BC Motor Vehicle Act, Section 180:
“When a pedestrian is crossing a highway at a point not in a crosswalk, the pedestrian must yield the right of way to a vehicle.”
Revised Code of Washington State 46.61.240
“Every pedestrian crossing a roadway at any point other than within a marked crosswalk or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway.”
Oregon State Vehicle Code, Chapter 814
(1) A pedestrian commits the offense of pedestrian failure to yield to a vehicle if the pedestrian
(b) fails to yield the right of way to a vehicle upon a roadway when the pedestrian is crossing the roadway at any point other than within a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk
California Vehicle Code, Division 11, Chapter 5, Code 21954(a)
“Every pedestrian upon a roadway at any point other than within a marked crosswalk or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway so near as to constitute an immediate hazard.”
Alaska Administrative Code Title 13 02.160(a)
A pedestrian crossing a roadway at a point other than within a marked crosswalk or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway, except as provided in AS 28.35.145 (which deals with pedestrians embarking or disembarking a school bus).
They all say pretty much the same thing. Pedestrians have right of way over vehicles in a crosswalk and nowhere else.
Feel free to look up the actual law in your own jurisdiction. I will bet you all the money in my pockets against all the money in your pockets that is says the same thing.
No, I think you missed the point.
If you chose to step onto the street without giving drivers of vehicles time to adjust for that, then things like inertia, braking force and reaction time will take precedence over human rules like right of way.
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I guess I get your point, but it’s kind of irrelevant.
It’s the same no matter how you’re getting around. Walking is in no way special that way. If you proceed blithely assuming others have seen you and will yield just because you have right of way - whether you’re on foot, in a car, on a motorcycle, in a hovercraft, on a snowmobile, in a monowheel, or in an AT-AT walker - things will go poorly.
That’s an orthogonal issue to who has or should have right of way in a given situation.
No, it’s central.
If there is such a place where pedestrians automatically have the right of way on the street (seems unlikely), then there has to be a mechanism to alert drivers that they’ll have to yield while there’s still time to do so, before the Cold Equations and Trolley Problems take over.
Note that even if pedestrians don’t have the right of way, drivers aren’t allowed to just run them over (unless you have laws passed by alt-right maniacs).
I guess it depends on where you live. In Seattle, jaywalking is almost unheard of. Drove me crazy. In Portland OR, people seem to go out of their way to jaywalk.
There is a mechanism to “alert drivers that they’ll have to yield” - you position yourself to make it clear you intend to proceed, in a location where you have the right of way, but only do so once it’s clear that the other person sees you and is slowing down to accomodate you.
You proceed on the assumption that most drivers understand the rules of the road and see you, but a few will fail one or both of those criteria - trust but verify, basically. This mechanism applies everywhere, to all modes of transport.
You are doing this when you approach an intersection in a car and don’t just barrel through even though there’s a yield sign on the cross street. You are doing this when you ride past a driveway on a bicycle and watch to make sure someone isn’t just backing out in front of you, not having seen you. You are doing this when you look both ways before crossing the street even though there’s a crosswalk.
Changing somewhat the rules about who has right of way in certain particular situations changes nothing, but nothing, about the general process of taking your right of way in the presence of other road users who are supposed to yield to you.
Here in CO, we often see newly-arrived Californians arrogantly stepping into fast traffic on 4-lane streets that are actually state highways (Federal Blvd., Colfax Ave.). It’s such a delight to see the look of terror when they suddenly realize that the drivers are NOT stopping for them, as hitting a pedestrian jay-walking on a highway is just a Darwin Award.
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From The Highway Code
Rule 206
Drive carefully and slowly when
in crowded shopping streets, Home Zones and Quiet Lanes (see Rule 218) or residential areas
driving past bus and tram stops; pedestrians may emerge suddenly into the road passing parked vehicles, especially ice cream vans; children are more interested in ice cream than traffic and may run into the road unexpectedly
needing to cross a pavement or cycle track; for example, to reach or leave a driveway. Give way to pedestrians and cyclists on the pavement
reversing into a side road; look all around the vehicle and give way to any pedestrians who may be crossing the road
turning at road junctions; give way to pedestrians who are already crossing the road into which you are turning
the pavement is closed due to street repairs and pedestrians are directed to use the road
approaching pedestrians on narrow rural roads without a footway or footpath. Always slow down and be prepared to stop if necessary, giving them plenty of room as you drive past.
The only roads where pedestrians are forbidden are motorways.
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Please inform the pedestrians of Hoboken of this, it’s an alien concept. They walk off the curb at crosswalks without looking up from their phones. Almost, but not quite as annoying is people just standing on corners or even in the street who aren’t actually looking to cross. Waiting for an Uber is the likeliest explanation.
The best place for being a pedestrian that I’ve ever lived in is France.
There’s usually no right turn on red, the stop lines are set well back from the crosswalks, and pedestrians and drivers can’t see each other’s signals. Plus they have independent signals for cyclists in many places.
People drive too fast and inattentively here too, but the infrastructure gives pedestrians a fighting chance. I had more close calls as a pedestrian the last time I was in Vancouver for a week then I’ve had here in five years.
I think jaywalking can get you a ticket here, but a) I can’t see why, and b) neither can anyone else–crossing wherever is common.
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That depends entirely on where you are, both de facto AND de jure.
In LA, at least, pedestrians DO have “automatic” right of way, in any situation. Period. It’s simply not uniform, depending on your local laws. Remember, municipalities CAN and DO add their own traffic control and/or jaywalking statutes to state laws.
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I have the feeling you use a different interpretation of the term ‘right of way’ than most people do.
No, you are not allowed to purposefully hit someone when he/she steps on the street/freeway. But that’s not the same as saying the person has ‘right of way’.
For Toronto, Ontario:
Section 144(22) of The Highway Traffic Act states: " Where portions of a roadway are marked for pedestrian use, no pedestrian shall cross the roadway except within a portion so marked." The law does not stipulate how far from the nearest crosswalk one must be in order to legally cross mid-block, but the Toronto Police have advised to generally use 30 metres as a ‘rule of thumb.’
Where there is no crosswalk, it is legal for pedestrians to cross, so long as one yields to on-coming traffic. Toronto Municipal Code 950 Section 950-300B states: "No person shall, except where traffic control signals are in operations, or where traffic is being controlled by a police officer, or at a pedestrian crossover, proceed so as not to yield the right-of-way to vehicles and streetcars on the roadway; however, nothing in this section shall relieve the driver of a vehicle or streetcar from obligation of taking all due care to avoid a collision.
“Jaywalking” is a slang word that is often used to describe various pedestrian offences, including crossing at an intersection against a red light or “don’t walk” signal, crossing mid-block where a crosswalk exists, or failing to yield to vehicles when crossing the roadway. However, “jaywalking” is not a legally defined offence.
Police discretion on if it’s jaywalking or not, probably varying across the province.
I wonder if there have been some changes relatively recently. I could swear that I’ve read that historically France had terrible traffic laws that led to frequent accidents. (I think that supposedly France’s traffic laws were based on certain rights travelers should have without taking into account what would actually be safest for all parties.) But perhaps my sources weren’t good.
“My motor vehicle act.”
That’s India, no? Is that rule any more or less ignored than all the other ones?
I’ve done approximately 3 minutes’ research, and AFAICT in the UK it’s not regulated who has right of way when a pedestrian crosses the road except at a crossing. The Highway Code says to wait until there are no cars before crossing the road. I would imagine since there’s no regulation it’s left up to the individual to weigh up the cost/benefit of not giving way.
I also learned that electric pushbikes don’t count as vehicles. Which means when Ducati release their 200mph electric monster as long as they give it pedals you won’t even need to wear a helmet, let alone get insurance.
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