City of St. George, Utah :: Pedestrians Rights and Duties

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175 East 200 North

St. George, UT 84770

(435) 627-4000

November 21, 2009

Police Department 200 East 265 North St. George, UT 84770 (435) 634-5000
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Pedestrians Rights and Duties

We field a lot of calls regarding jaywalkers. It's like their parents never taught them to cross at the corner. I remember my mom telling me that on more than one occasion. What's the problem here? Could it be that some parents don't know or are violating the law them selves and thereby "unteaching" their children? I had the privilege to teach the kids in Safety Town two years in a row. We taught them everything about safety that we could think of, including crossing at a corner. One child, holding onto dad's finger, pulled back as dad started to cross the street to the car. "Daddy, we have to go to the light." The response: "Oh, it's OK" and he pulled her across the street. The "unlearning" begins quickly. Any morning you want to, get up before the sun and count the number of people walking in the street and dodging cars in the name of getting in shape. And they wear the most "visible" colors: grey, dark blue, purple. At least those were the colors on the people I almost took out one morning. They were taking up the entire right lane as I came up Dixie Drive. My lights didn't illuminate them at all. The other day, I witnessed a citizen have a come-apart because kids were crossing the street at every location BUT the corner and then he called the College Security Officer an "Idiot" for not doing anything. Did the officer know something that the citizen didn't? So what are the laws exactly?

Utah Traffic Code 41-6-77 through 80 says:

...the operator of a vehicle shall yield...to a pedestrian...within a crosswalk...when the pedestrian is upon the half of the roadway upon which the vehicle is traveling...or approaching so closely...as to be in danger.
A pedestrian may not suddenly...walk or run into the path of a vehicle...
The operator of a vehicle approaching a school crosswalk shall come to a complete stop if...the warning lights are operating and the crosswalk is occupied by any person. (This means the entire school crosswalk shuts down, not just the half upon which the pedestrian is walking.)
If a vehicle is stopped at a marked or at any unmarked crosswalk at an intersection to permit a pedestrian to cross the roadway, the operator of any other vehicle approaching from the rear may not overtake and pass the stopped vehicle.
Between adjacent intersections at which traffic control signals are in operation, pedestrians may not cross at any place except in a marked crosswalk. (We have no Aadjacent intersections at which traffic control signals are in operation@ where the college officer was located. Sounds to me like the college officer might have known these laws. Certainly not an "Idiot.")
A 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 on the roadway.
The operator of a vehicle shall exercise care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian...

WAIT A MINUTE!!! What's an "unmarked crosswalk"? Again, let's go to the definitions: A "Crosswalk" means: that part of the roadway at an intersection included within the connections of the lateral lines of the sidewalks on opposite sides of the highway... "(This means the sidewalk extends across the street to the other side). It also means - any portion of a roadway at an intersection or elsewhere distinctly indicated for pedestrian crossing by lines or other markings on the surface."

What about those athletic souls in the pre-dawn hours of the morning? 41-6-82 states: "Where there is a sidewalk provided and its use is practicable, a pedestrian may not walk along and upon an adjacent roadway" and " where a sidewalk is not provided, a pedestrian walking along and upon a highway shall walk only on a shoulder, as far as practicable from the edge of the roadway."

Some safety tips to follow when walking for exercise:

If wearing a hood, make sure it doesn't obscure your vision.
Avoid earphones that diminish your hearing (you may hear an oncoming car) or constantly look around to compensate.
Don't assume when crossing a multi-lane road, that all vehicles will stop just because one did. One may change lanes to come around the one stopping for you.
Walk with a partner or buddy. This provides security and someone to go for help if needed.
When crossing at an intersection, make eye contact with the driver of a stopped car. Don't assume they are stopping for you without this eye contact.
Stay on the sidewalk if there is one. If there is none:
Wear one of those blinking LED lights or wear reflective materials or carry a flashlight. Avoid dark clothing.
Walk toward traffic and be prepared to dodge a car that doesn't see you.

Parents: teach your kids by word AND deed. They will do the things you do, I guarantee it. "What you are doing is so loud I can't hear a word you are saying" comes to mind.

Sorry for the long article, but this is a very serious subject. A subject that the St. George Police Department and the Dixie State College Security deal with every day. And people are being injured and killed because of this. The bottom line is patience. It's still a small town. And we know these people. We can make a difference.

Craig Harding
Public Information Officer
St. George Police Department

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