please empty your brain below
Another variation is seen where I live, near a street with day-long slow traffic: ignore the pedestrian crossings in favour of crossing half the street, then stand on the white line hoping for a stop in the traffic or (more often) a concerned driver to stop so they can complete their crossing. Worse if they abruptly appear from behind a van or bus in front of you.

Gordon | 23.04.15 - 7:19 a.m. | #

Indeed. A guerilla pedestrian knocked me off my bike which resulted in a broken leg, 5 days in hospital and a large metal plate held in place with 8 screws. Her excuse? The CARS had stopped for the red light 50 or so yards ahead and she didn't check for bicycles in the cycle lane.

Sue | 23.04.15 - 7:27 a.m. | #

i've ridden bicycles and motorcycles in london for years and i have noticed pedestrians increasingly being idiotic, taking risks and not even looking up before stepping in the road. i've hit a few pedestrians.

simple rule - if the Red man is showing ....DO NOT CROSS.

dave | 23.04.15 - 7:44 a.m. | #

Gordon that's one of the hazards of filtering between the lanes on a bicycle or motorcycle. And what's worse is they're looking the other way to you. At night in the drizzle and when they're wearing black with an oncoming van with one headlight on full beam!

But generally, Peds are protected by the iPhone of +10 invincibility. So that's all good then.

Julian Bond | Homepage | 23.04.15 - 7:59 a.m. | #

I've noticed that London is particularly bad for this, especially in the area around Piccadilly Circus, etc. There just seems to be such a mass of people that cars and other road users are outnumbered and walkers progress as if they did not exist, even walking on the roads sometimes. I don't know what effect it would have on traffic flow through the theatre district, but I've pondered a number of times why the powers that be don't just pedestrianise the whole area ...

Antipodean | 23.04.15 - 8:00 a.m. | #

I've quite a lot of sympathy with this, although I regularly commit quite a few of the crimes you and others describe (I'm particularly bad at the one Gordon mentions). I've just been in Denmark, where (like Germany) crossing before the man turns green is frowned on, even if the street is clear. Mind you, they have their share of sheep - on a previous visit I darted across the road against the lights, and a load of people (assuming the light had turned green) stepped out after me and were almost flattened by a bus.

Part of me thinks that a timer indicating when the green man will appear might help - certainly my local pelican crossing seems to be totally unpredictable: either changing instantly or taking about three years. But I suppose that if I saw that the time was 120 seconds or something, I'd probably dart across anyway.

I suppose UK citizens aren't civic-minded in the way Germans and Scandinavians are and don't have the jaywalking laws that keep Americans in line, so we get the worst of both worlds.

Baldassaro | 23.04.15 - 8:07 a.m. | #

But the thing is, I think, that road traffic doesn't have the right of way, ever. Unless some specific law has been enacted to the contrary*, pedestrians always have the right of way. Obviously there are times and places where it would be extremely stupid to exercise that right, but it nonetheless exists.

Zebra crossings, pelican crossings etc make it easier for people to cross roads - and better for traffic too as they corral pedestrians into certain predictable crossing places. This however leads drivers to think that because they have to stop for pedestrians when the light's red, they don't have to at other times when really they should. Obviously sometimes they can't, because they're going too fast or can't see the pedestrians, which is why trying to cross in such places is foolhardy. But if the traffic is stationary when you start to cross, and drivers can clearly see you, they have no right and no excuse to run you over, whatever the lights say.

*If it has, I would love to know about it.

Sarah | Homepage | 23.04.15 - 8:25 a.m. | #

Having recently driven an electric car in London, I was shocked at the number of pedestrians who stepped out without looking, clearly relying on the sound of an engine to alert them to a car approaching.

Beth | 23.04.15 - 8:52 a.m. | #

Sarah,

You are correct. A green light at traffic lights means continue if safe to do so. Drivers are taught in the Highway code to always give priority to pedestrians. This applies especially when turning (you or your indicator might not have been visible when the pedestrian started to cross). It also applies at traffic lights e.g. when the sheer number of pedestrians means they take longer than the lights allowed for.

There is also a bit in the highway code (backed up by law) about not hassling pedestrians (e.g. by blowing your horn) to cross quicker.

Pedantic of Purley | 23.04.15 - 9:09 a.m. | #

I don't think the authorities help at all in this. Traffic light preference is routinely given to the motorist, meaning that pedestrians end up waiting for ages. When TfL re-signalled a junction near me that I use to get to the tube station, it sped everything up for motorists, but it now takes me three minutes longer to get to the tube station. Thirty minutes of my week has gone, every week for years. And that's just one junction. So of course people end up taking short cuts.

And to be fair, there are plenty of times when the red pedestrian light is on and its perfectly safe to cross. There's a massive junction near my house and I know it's foibles inside out. The light goes on red way before it needs to for example. And because I know the sequence of the lights, I know exactly when I can cross. I always look carefully before I do. I am regularly amazed that at this big, busy junction, so many people just walk out into the middle of the road.

They stun me. I saw someone two nights ago do something I've seen several times before, a little further down. In this case there's three lanes. The one closest to the person crossing is empty. The second and third are in the other direction and the traffic has stopped due to traffic lights. Person starts to cross.

Within seconds a siren is heard. An ambulance is coming. FAST. No surprise in that. This is a main road that leads to a hospital. There's always ambulances.

The pedestrian freezes. They are within a metre of the pavement. There's a loud, noisy, very visible vehicle heading towards them.

They have a choice. Go back to safety, or keep crossing.

That person kept crossing. They speed up their crossing. The ambulance gets within metres of them.

I've been in the same boat before. I headed back to the pavement because I don't want to be in that ambulance. Yet most people just keep on crossing.

And don't even get me started on parents who tell their offspring to run across the road...

Andrew Bowden | Homepage | 23.04.15 - 9:28 a.m. | #

I like the fact that pedestrians always have right of way in the UK. But I'm happy to wait until it's safe to cross, where safe is my own judgment. Similarly, roundabouts work better than traffic lights until there are too many cars and nobody can get onto the roundabout from one entrance.

When driving, I've seen my share of 'bad' pedestrians, but I've never hit one. It should be even easier to stop for a 'bad' pedestrian when you're on a bike.

JQ | 23.04.15 - 9:49 a.m. | #

As the Highway Code says, all road users should "Always show due care and consideration for others." More emphasis on this and less on which kind of vehicle has priority in any given situation would probably help.

Annie | 23.04.15 - 10:30 a.m. | #

JQ, a bike takes further to stop than a same-speed car - and the cyclist will likely come off the bike, hitting the road or, worse, street furniture or other traffic.

Gordon | 23.04.15 - 10:31 a.m. | #

Personally, I applaud this (well, until it gets messy, that is) as a sign that the reign of the all-powerful car may at last be ending.
Perhaps pedestrians are finally starting to realise that the person driving a ton and a half of metal actually has no more divine right to an unimpeded journey than they do.
The sheer number of cyclists must have had a rebalancing effect on traffic priorities too. As traffic speeds slow to a crawl in most of London, it's seen as perfectly possible to nip between vehicles. The car, while still necessary out of town, is starting to seem like an irrelevant nuisance in cities.
Perhaps Clarkson chose an apposite moment to, er, punch out?

PS: I agree about the phone-blind idiots, though. However, at least they're usually only a danger to themselves. The ones texting while driving dumper trucks worry me more...

ChrisM | 23.04.15 - 10:34 a.m. | #

I basically came in to say exactly what Sarah wrote. With the one caveat, of course. The one place pedestrians do not have right of way is on the motorway. This is because they are forbidden from using it.

I find it staggering that most drivers are unaware of this basic principle. It should be a part of both the written and practical tests.

Chz | 23.04.15 - 10:41 a.m. | #

"Guerilla pedestrians" seem not to exist in Edinburgh. During a week-long visit at Easter, we were constantly bemused at how many people stood stock-still at the kerb when the red man was showing... despite there being ZERO cars in sight in any direction. We strode across in such circumstances, but never did we see a local follow our lead.

Frank F | 23.04.15 - 10:49 a.m. | #

Pedestrians have right of way in all circumstances? What, even when they step out into the traffic without warning? Citation needed.

Yes, the Highway Code deals with pedestrians *at crossings* (rule 185 - motorists MUST give way when a pedestrian has moved onto a zebra crossing - and rule 198 - give way to anyone still crossing after the signal for vehicles has changed to green. This advice applies to all crossings.)

At a junction, if pedestrians have started to cross the side road, then they have priority (rules 8 and 170).

Otherwise, the rules for crossing actually say "If traffic is coming, let it pass." (rule 7D). See https://www.gov.uk/rules-pedestrians-1-to-35/crossing-the-road-7-to-17

But as Annie says, it is wrong to focus punctiliously on rights: each person should have consideration for the others. Better to walk (ride or drive) defensively, than to rely on your "right of way".

Andrew | 23.04.15 - 11:15 a.m. | #

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-26073797?SThisFB

Piece about how the motor industry lobbied, successfully, for laws on 'jaywalking' in the US.

Thankfully we've got it the right way round here.

Lorenzo | 23.04.15 - 11:17 a.m. | #

MANIFESTO:
(1) Walking on pavements is the sign of a pedestrian mind.
(2) If the vehicle can stop, it will.
(3) There is always a gap.
(4) A motor gives the opportunity to get about faster than others, not the right.
(5) There are more people in the crowd of pedestrians than in the queue of vehicles.
(6) Please let the bus go first.

HTFB | 23.04.15 - 12:08 p.m. | #

Calling all pedestrians i.e. everyone! Check out and get involved with the work of Living Streets "Putting People First". They have some excellent campaigns.
http://livingstreets.org.uk/

O | 23.04.15 - 12:35 p.m. | #

Whilst it is certainly good that we don't have laws against Jaywalking I certainly agree some pedestrians need to take more care.

One thing I saw a nasty accident with a few years ago was when the traffic was stopped on a road. It was a one way street and a pedestrian was at the crossing and the red man was on. Checking left and right they saw the traffic was stationary both ways, so crossed, but were hit by a motorbike going at speed overtaking the stationary cars. I've seen near misses in a similar situation where the road is a dual carriageway and a motorbike is filtering down the middle. This is why it's always a good idea even if crossing in stationary traffic to check right at each lane, to ensure you aren't hit by a motorbike (or push bike) which is (legally) overtaking.

Jon Combe | 23.04.15 - 12:48 p.m. | #

I was taught the golden rule for crossing a road a long time ago. Even if using a zebra or pelican crossing where you are supposed to have the right of way - ALWAYS look first. That vehicle (whatever it is ) might not have working brakes or might just think that the rules of the road don't apply to them! It's very difficult to prove that you had the right of way when you are lying in a coffin!!

Jo W | 23.04.15 - 1:15 p.m. | #

It's not just in central London. I am shocked by the number of young people in the outer London boroughs near me where they think they can cross a busy road at any time and anywhere regardless of the traffic or the proximity of a suitable controlled or other crossing. I'm just waiting for the splat to happen when some idiot youth steps out into a 30mph road to be mown down by a driver trying to avoid a bigger vehicle pile up behind him.

B | 23.04.15 - 3:02 p.m. | #

Yep, carelessness aside, all the more reason to get the national default urban speed limit down to 20mph. It's hard to argue that someone's mistake should get instantly punished with death.

At 12m the 20mph vehicle will have stopped before impact.
At 12m the 30mph vehicle is still doing 26mph at impact.

http://www.20splentyforus.org.uk/

O | 23.04.15 - 3:46 p.m. | #

What is most likely "ultimately unsustainable" is the continued increase in population. More people = more traffic, more dirt, more noise, more "problems", more over-crowding, etc.

Working Class Hero | 23.04.15 - 4:18 p.m. | #

One of the problems with pedestrian "impatience" is the ridiculous imbalance between the wait for peds to cross the road at traffic lights compared with vehicles. The recently introduced countdown for peds (how long you've got left to cross - 10 seconds and counting down) would never work the other way (how long you have to wait before being able to cross - 120 seconds and counting).
Additionally, I've been campaigning with/against TfL for TWO years to get one set of ped signals changed at Russell Square (peds held on red even though NO traffic is using the road!!). Even though they accept it needs changing - nothing happens. This would not be the case if motors were being held up unnecessarily! All the time peds are held in contempt they will, of course, take risks. Sorry, rant over.

John | 23.04.15 - 5:05 p.m. | #

I don't think there is a specific "right" of way except where street signs/markings indicate it e.g traffic lights, zebra crossings, give way signs. The only other rule is that if something is in your way you shouldn't hit it: stop or go round it. That you shouldn't step in front of a bus is common sense, but the bus has no more (and no less) "right" to be there than you do.
Like the idiot taxi driver who tried to squash my bike between his cab and a bus this morning - if there isn't room to get past me when I'm overtaking a stationary vehicle, you'll just have to wait your turn behind me. I had as much right to be in the bus/taxi lane (and not in the separate cycle lane, which was obstructed by the bus) as he did.

timbo | 23.04.15 - 5:11 p.m. | #

People who push a baby buggy out into the moving traffic and then stop on the white line - should be an offence liable to prosecution.

Gripper | 23.04.15 - 5:57 p.m. | #

We can rely on Darwin to weed out the weak/slow/texting pedestrians.

Chris | 23.04.15 - 8:45 p.m. | #

I am one of those people, if you judge it and know you have enough time and space, then go for it

Betty | 23.04.15 - 8:50 p.m. | #

I have one rule. I do not cross when the red man is showing if there is a parent with a young child with them and trying to teach their child how to cross safely.

popartist | 23.04.15 - 9:44 p.m. | #

I blame it all on the automobiles. I'd lobby for restoring the oringinal code where every motorist must be proceeded by a person on foot carrying a flag.

john | Homepage | 24.04.15 - 12:48 a.m. | #

Perhaps it's time motorists, bus drivers and particular those drivers of gigantic sightseeing buses were fined for entering a pedestrian crossing when it's clear that as soon as the lights change they'll be stuck there. I'm fed up of crossings being blocked by cars, vans, buses and the like.

| 24.04.15 - 7:38 a.m. | #

Not only are there the "chancers" who make a judgement about dashing across the road there are the "head buried in phone" brigade plus there's the "off my head" gang who barely know where they are, never mind that they're crossing a road. I've nearly knocked several people down in that state even when filtering on a motorbike at less than 5 mph past stopped traffic. They just appear out of nowhere and are oblivious to traffic. Finsbury Park and Camden Town are good places for such encounters.

The other trait I've spotted with pedestrians is the "this is my space on the pavement and I ain't moving for nobody" brigade. There's this apparent divine right to occupy a ludicrous amount of pavement while lolling along at barely a stroll and stopping anybody else from getting past. Try Wood Green High Road if you want your patience sorely tested and don't try to run for a bus - you'll never make it to the stop due to the need to slalom madly round the "immovables".

I'm sure it was never this bad even just a few years ago - something's changed in the pedestrian psyche.

PC | 24.04.15 - 8:21 a.m. | #

I am sometimes reminded of the John Cleese, Ronnie Barker, Ronnie Corbett sketch where "I look up to him, but I look down on him". Pedestrians can be perceived by some as being the proletariat of the highways, with cyclists, motor bikes, cars, vans, buses and lorries all above them in the pecking order. Of course the wheeled users of the road have separate perceptions of class and priorities within themselves, but all agreeing on the profound inferiority of anyone walking...until the time comes for them to leave the vehicle and walk themselves - somehow the Grand Order of things changes then.

But it does seem to be a class thing, and therefore inherently English. Breeding will out, you know! Ho Jeeves! pour me a pink gin while I toss some red hot coins out of the balcony for the masses to pick up - their cries of greed changing to howls of pain.

Nick Flowers | 24.04.15 - 10:07 a.m. | #

Do you remember the days of the proper 'Zebra' crossing, you just stood at the kerb and vehicles stopped for you and sometimesthe driver waved you across. Well all that politeness changed when light controlled crossings were introduced, now crossing is taken out of your hands and there is no need for politeness. Many motorists and cyclists ignore a light which is changing to red even though for seconds before that it was amber so now it is more dangerous for pedestrians.

Mikeh | 24.04.15 - 3:02 p.m. | #

It takes far too long for the lights to turn green for pedestrians. Are we really saying a pedestrian should not cross when you can see all the way down the road that there are no cars coming?

In Paris, at junctions, they'll have zebras across all the pedestrian crossing points including side roads. If a car turns onto a side road, and they have a pedestrian walking across the zebra they must stop.

This makes use of the 'down-time', when a pedestrian is waiting whilst no cars are coming, and in an intelligent and effective manner. Of course, in the UK, we couldn't possibly implement such an equivalent and intelligent system... could we?

Mynamewouldnormallygohere | 27.04.15 - 12:10 a.m. | #











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