Crossing The Street Without Using a Crosswalk

If you are crossing the street, be sure to use a crosswalk - and to wait until it is safe to cross. The use of crosswalks greatly reduces the risk of pedestrian accidents. Drivers expect to see pedestrians there, and the crosswalk is a warning sign to drivers that a pedestrian might be coming. But what if you cross mid-block between two crosswalks? California Vehicle Code 21955 provides:

Between adjacent intersections controlled by traffic control signal devices or by police officers, pedestrians shall not cross the roadway at any place except in a crosswalk.

Of course, if you cross the street mid-block without using a crosswalk, you are not being as careful as you could be. But that does not mean a driver can just run you down. California Vehicle Code Section 21954(b) provides:

The provisions of this section shall not relieve the driver of a vehicle from the duty to exercise due care for the safety of any pedestrian upon a roadway.

In other words - both the pedestrian and the driver have to be careful and exercise due car in order to prevent a serious pedestrian accident.

Pete Clancy is an Oakland personal injury lawyer.