Jaywalking

's Orchard Road Jaywalking is the act of pedestrians walking in or crossing a roadway in a manner that contravenes traffic regulations. The term jay-walking originated in the United States as a derivation of the phrase jay-driver (the word jay meaning a greenhorn, or rube ), referring to people who drove horse-drawn carriages and automobiles on the wrong side of the road. The term is not a historically neutral one. The arrival of the automobile in the opening decades of the 20th century led to increasingly deadly conflicts in the street, and the public was generally unsympathetic to motorists or to early attempts to legislate pedestrian behavior. In response, the US automobile industry and associated organizations undertook public campaigns to frame pedestrians, newly impugned as jay-walkers, as a problematic element in the new automotive age. The first widely successful criminalization of jaywalking was enacted in Los Angeles in 1925, using legislation drafted by the auto lobby that inspired similar ordinances in other American cities. Jaywalking laws vary widely by jurisdiction. In many countries, the word is not generally used and, with the exception of certain high-speed roads such as motorways, there are no laws limiting how pedestrians are allowed to cross public highways.…

's Orchard Road Jaywalking is the act of pedestrians walking in or crossing a roadway in a manner that contravenes traffic regulations. The term jay-walking originated in the United States as a derivation of the phrase jay-driver (the word jay meaning a greenhorn, or rube ), referring to people who drove horse-drawn carriages and automobiles on the wrong side of the road. The term is not a historically neutral one. The arrival of the automobile in the opening decades of the 20th century led to increasingly deadly conflicts in the street, and the public was generally unsympathetic to motorists or to early attempts to legislate pedestrian behavior. In response, the US automobile industry and associated organizations undertook public campaigns to frame pedestrians, newly impugned as jay-walkers, as a problematic element in the new automotive age. The first widely successful criminalization of jaywalking was enacted in Los Angeles in 1925, using legislation drafted by the auto lobby that inspired similar ordinances in other American cities. Jaywalking laws vary widely by jurisdiction. In many countries, the word is not generally used and, with the exception of certain high-speed roads such as motorways, there are no laws limiting how pedestrians are allowed to cross public highways. Thus, globally speaking, legal texts use different concepts, one of which is Rules applicable to pedestrians, put forward by the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic. As an example of the subtleties and discrepancies of the laws governing pedestrian road traffic, even as a signing member of the Vienna convention, the United Kingdom does not have jaywalking laws: its Highway Code relies on the pedestrians making their own judgment on whether it is safe to cross based on the Green Cross Code. Some municipalities that previously criminalized jaywalking have legalized or decriminalized it. ==Origin== 's Federal Art Project While jaywalking is associated with pedestrians today, the earliest references to "jay" behavior in the street were about horse-drawn carriages and automobiles in 1905 Kansas: "jay drivers" who did not drive on the correct side of the street. The term swiftly expanded to pedestrians, and by 1909, The Chanute Daily Tribune warned "The jay walker needs attention as well as the jay driver, and is about as big a nuisance." No historical evidence supports an alternative folk etymology by which the word is traced to either the letter "J" (characterizing the route a jaywalker might follow), or "jake walk" (an early term related to a drunkard's walk). The automobile lobby in the US took up the cause of labeling and scorning jaywalkers in the 1910s and early 1920s In 1912, for instance, Popular Mechanics magazine reported that the term was current in Kansas City: "The city pedestrian who cares not for traffic regulations at street corners, but strays all over the street, crossing in the middle of the block, or attempting to save time by choosing a diagonal route across a street intersection instead of adhering to the regular crossing, is designated as a 'jay walker,' in Kansas City." In 1915, when New York City's police commissioner Arthur Woods sought to apply the word "jaywalker" to anyone who crossed the street at mid-block, the New York Times protested, calling it “highly opprobrious” and “a truly shocking name.” The earliest citation in the Oxford English Dictionary dates to 1917. The word was promoted by the pro-automobile lobby in the 1920s, according to historian and alternative transportation advocate Peter D. Norton. Today, in the US, the word is often used synonymously with its current legal definition, crossing the street illegally. Originally in the US, the legal rule was that "all persons have an equal right in the highway, and that in exercising the right each shall take due care not to injure other users of the way". In time, however, streets became the province of vehicular traffic, both practically and legally. ==Causes== , 1973. People jaywalk for various reasons, including convenience, the expectation of the right to free movement of individuals, and sometimes even personal safety, generally to cross the street. Going to a crosswalk can require a long detour. Although cultural norms about jaywalking vary by locality, the practice cannot simply be explained by corresponding differences in law. For example, Copenhagen and New York City have historically had similar restrictions on jaywalking at signalised crosswalks, but the practice is far more common in New York. Pedestrians are often forced to walk outside crosswalks when they are blocked by cars due to traffic congestion or drivers stopping too far forward. The common practice of car-centric traffic-signal synchronisation produces green waves for motorists but not necessarily for pedestrians, who may encounter little or no conflicting traffic at cross streets where signals instruct them to wait. Pedestrians may dislike crossing at intersections for other reasons, such as discomfort dealing with traffic from several directions (whereas a jaywalker at a location distant from an intersection only needs to observe at most two directions of traffic), or wanting to avoid the extra air emissions generated by vehicles stopping and starting (given that vehicular emissions are significantly less when vehicles are moving at steady speeds). In rural and suburban areas, people may jaywalk due to a lack of sidewalks. Some pedestrians are unwilling to observe lengthy wait times at signals. They are also more likely to make "informal crossings" at wide roads, or at locations where formal crosswalks are too distant to be practical for them to use. In an academic study focused on behaviour in Montreal and Quebec City, for individual behaviour, holding a smartphone in one's hand reduces the probability of crossing on red. In contrast, looking at traffic was "over four times more associated with crossing illegally" than being distracted by a phone. Some crosswalk signals that require a pedestrian to push a button are unusable for orthodox Jews on the Shabbat. ==Safety== Unsignalised marked crosswalks where drivers are more likely to yield to pedestrians are not necessarily safer than their unmarked counterparts, where pedestrians behave more cautiously, not expecting motorists to yield. Many American newspapers publish stories that are critical of pedestrian road users' safety practices, while police departments often instigate education and enforcement campaigns to curb jaywalking. While nearly 60% of American pedestrian deaths occur outside of crosswalks, fewer than 20% occur in close proximity to a crosswalk. ====Mainland China==== In recent years, jaywalking has become more strictly controlled in China as car traffic increased. Police have tested facial recognition to identify jaywalkers. The authorities applied a new method to deter jaywalkers by displaying their photo on large public screens in the area where the jaywalking occurred, to publicly shame any violator of pedestrian street rules. The system has flaws: the photo of the businesswoman Dong Mingzhu was displayed on those screens after the AI systems misinterpreted her appearance on a passing bus advertisement as a real person crossing the street in an illegal fashion. ====Israel==== Israeli transit regulations section 110 states a person shall not cross a road unless they have checked to make sure it is safe to do so. Where there is a "nearby" pedestrian crossing, a pedestrian shall not cross the road except at the pedestrian crossing. Where there is no pedestrian crossing nearby but there is a "nearby" intersection, the pedestrian shall cross "near" the intersection. In any case, the pedestrian shall cross at a reasonable speed and in the shortest straight line across the road, without spending undue time on the road. Israeli courts have ruled that the legislature left the term "nearby" deliberately vague and it must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. ====Philippines==== road median in Metro Manila. The sign roughly translates to "There is no crossing. Deadly." In the Philippines, jaywalking is not illegal. The Land Transportation and Traffic Code, which was passed in 1964, states that within commercial or residential areas, drivers of vehicles must yield the right of way to pedestrians crossing public roads on pedestrian crossings, except when traffic movement is regulated by traffic enforcers. Likewise, pedestrians must yield their right of way to motor vehicles when crossing a public road at any point other than a pedestrian crossing. It is however, illegal to cross or traverse an expressway on foot based on the Revised Rules and Regulations Governing Limited Access Highways. Local government units may explicitly prohibit jaywalking in their localities through local ordinances, such as Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Ordinance No. 1 series of 1995, which supplements city and municipal anti-jaywalking ordinances in Metro Manila on major roads. The ordinance prohibits crossing a street, thoroughfare, or highway outside of crosswalks (except crossing straight at an intersection corner) and crossing under a footbridge. It also prohibits crossing against traffic signals or hand signals of traffic enforcers and walking outside sidewalks in a manner that obstructs, inconveniences, or prevents free passage of vehicles. In 2007, the Supreme Court of the Philippines exemplified Article 2179 of the Civil Code of the Philippines in the context of jaywalking, ruling that a pedestrian who is injured as a result of jaywalking may forfeit the right to recover damages if their own negligence contributed to the injury. Alternatively, the pedestrian may only recover partial damages if the vehicle driver is found to have contributory negligence. ====Singapore==== In Singapore, jaywalking (not using a traffic crossing while within 50 metres; yards of it) is an offence. A fine of $50 is payable for the first offence. Repeat offenders can be charged $1000 and a jail term of 3 months, but the latter is rarely imposed. In 2011, 8,650 people were caught jaywalking and fined in Singapore. Between January and March 2012, Singapore prosecuted 1,758 for jaywalking, and between January and March 2013, 2,409 jaywalkers were fined. ===Europe=== 's status is signed at its entries and exits by a symbol, conforming to international agreements but specific to each country. Pedestrians are usually banned on European motorways. In many European countries, pedestrians are banned from high speed roads such as motorways or expressways, but they are generally permitted on regular rural and urban roads. That is done in compliance with the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic, which also contains concepts addressing the question of the usage of the road or street by pedestrians for walking or crossing. Some countries like Ireland do not comply with the convention as rigorously as others. Laws and traditions vary from country to country. Pedestrians account for 10% of motorway fatalities: 217 pedestrian fatalities on EU motorways in 2012 and 847 between 2010 and 2012. The rate is 20% in Poland, 17% in Great Britain, 15% in Spain and 10% in France. These include vehicle users who leave their vehicles after they have broken down, workers in work zones and individuals who illegally enter the motorway on foot. ====Czech Republic==== Pedestrians must cross at a zebra crossing, underpass, overpass, or traffic-light intersection if such a crossing is within 50 metres (yards). Otherwise, they may cross the road perpendicular to its axis after assuring themselves that it is safe to do so. Jaywalking is punishable by a fine of up to CZK 1,500 on the spot, or CZK 2,000–5,000 in further proceedings. ====France==== . Notice the fence, that motorists must cross to safety in case of breakdown. Pedestrians are required to use sidewalks (if any), and zebra crossings for crossing a street if one is within 50 metres (yards); they must also cross at right angles to the road axis, only cross a place (including a market/town square in which motor vehicles are permitted) or any intersection on a formal crossing cross only at the green pedestrian light if in situ, and obey a police officer, if one regulates crossing. More rules apply at night, on countryside roads, to groups of marching people, etc. Disregarding those rules may be punished by a fine of the lowest grade ("contravention de première classe": 11 to €17, or €33 if paid late) but few people were ever fined for such behavior; any actual fines were usually because they showed contempt instead of apologising or providing some valid safety reason. On the other hand, drivers must always let pedestrians cross if they have already started or if they clearly demonstrate the intention to do so, even when the pedestrian is disregarding the rules, and will bear full responsibility if an accident occurs. On French motorways, pedestrians are banned; in case of breakdown motorists are required to leave the car and walk away to safety, behind fences or lines marking the road boundaries, where no car can hit them. Nonetheless, some pedestrians are injured on motorways: in 2016, on the tolled motorway network: 16% of fatalities were pedestrians, an average of 23 pedestrian fatalities per year on the network. 69% of pedestrian motorway fatalities occurred on motorway lanes, 28% occurred on emergency lanes, and 3% in rest areas. injured pedestrians' presence on the motorway was due to breakdowns, stopping in emergency lanes (40%), accidents (28%), motorway staff (3%), providing assistance (2%), or other reasons (27%). Pedestrians must follow rules when crossing the street. Even so, Section 1 of the Road Traffic Regulation (Straßenverkehrs-Ordnung [StVO]), the most important section, requires the road user not to endanger anybody. Car drivers must always be prepared to brake for pedestrians, especially for children and elderly people. On the other hand, pedestrians, according to Section 25 § 25, Abs. 3, StVO (VwV), must watch the vehicular traffic carefully and cross a street quickly and using the shortest way across the driving lanes. Depending on the situation on the street, pedestrians may not cross the street except at intersections or within the markings of traffic signals or crosswalks. Pedestrians who cross the street at intersections or crossings must use existing traffic signals or crosswalks. Cars and bikes are required by law to give way to pedestrians (but not bicycle riders) at zebra crossings unless there is a traffic light. If one wants to cross the street outside the markings of traffic lights or crosswalks, one must carefully observe before and during the crossing that the road is clear, and wait before crossing if a vehicle approaches. A pedestrian may not interrupt the flow of traffic. Although being within 15 meters (yards) is not considered "at" the crosswalk or traffic light, pedestrians may not cross the street within 30 meters (yards) of a crosswalk or 40 meters (yards) of a traffic light. During heavy traffic, pedestrians may not cross the street, as they might have to stop on a traffic lane. Typical fines for not using existing crosswalks or traffic lights in Germany are between €5 and €10. ====Netherlands==== There is no concept of jaywalking in the Netherlands' traffic laws, so it is not an offence as such. Without zebra stripes, pedestrians must yield (to traffic crossing their path, not to turning traffic on their path), but at a zebra, road traffic must slow down and yield as soon as pedestrians seem about to cross. ====Poland==== Jaywalking is an offence. One must cross only at recognised crossing points if there is one within 100 metres (yards) (including pedestrian tunnels and footbridges). Otherwise, regular roads may be crossed with due care. Crossing dual carriageways (except motorways) is allowed only outside towns. Crossing tram and train tracks that are separate and parallel to street is always prohibited. Crossing on red lights is prohibited and considered to be an offence. According to regulations of "Prawo o Ruchu Drogowym" (Traffic Regulations Act) crossing the road outside the pedestrian crossing is allowed only if it does not endanger traffic safety or obstruct traffic. The pedestrian is not obliged to give priority to vehicles and should follow the shortest line to the opposite edge of the road, perpendicular to the road axis. Crossing the track separated from the road is only allowed in designated locations. ====Portugal==== It is illegal to cross the road except when the nearest zebra crossing is more than 50 metres (yards) away. Any crossing above that distance is legal. Pedestrians have priority over cars. ====Scandinavia==== It is legal to cross all roads except motorways in Denmark, Sweden and Norway. In Norway, a red man at the crossing is the signal for pedestrians not to begin crossing if it would impede cars or entail danger, but a person may walk across if there are no cars nearby. Risking oneself by running across in front of cars is not legal. Cyclists are required to stop at red lights, but because not everyone is aware of that, the Norwegian national cyclists' organisation has proposed to end confusion by prohibiting all people from crossing at red lights. In Denmark, it is illegal to cross the road outside of a pedestrian crossing if one is nearby. In Sweden, it is illegal, but not punishable, for a pedestrian to cross at a red light. However, if doing this causes a traffic accident, the pedestrian could be convicted of negligence in traffic. ====Serbia==== In Serbia, it is illegal to cross roads other than at pedestrian crossings if there is a zebra crossing within 100 metres (yards). ====Slovenia==== In Slovenia, pedestrians must use zebra crossings and obey traffic signals. They may cross elsewhere only if the nearest zebra crossing is at least away and the lanes are not divided by a solid center line or median. Pedestrians have priority only at zebra crossings; elsewhere, vehicles are not required to yield. Violations are punishable by a fine of 40 euros. jaywalking with red light ====Switzerland==== In Switzerland, pedestrians are generally allowed to cross the street everywhere. They have priority on zebra crossings but should cross with care. However, they must use a pedestrian crossing, bridge or underpass if it is within 50 metres (yards). Certain types of roads must not be entered by pedestrians, such as highways and motorways. Failure to comply is subject to a fine of 20 Swiss Francs. Likewise, crossing or bypassing of closed railway gates is prohibited. On motorways, fines may vary based on the situation. A driver driving at 100 km/h (60 mph) on a road with a 120 km/h (75 mph) speed limit, if the light visibility is 60 metres (200 feet) and the braking distance is 65 metres (210 feet), may be fined for not noticing a person on the road. Even if that person is suicidal, as in a court case in 2017, that fact does not matter. A fine of 210 Swiss francs fine is cheaper than the court costs. However, such circumstances may also be considered to be exceptional and unpredictable. ===North America=== ====Canada==== Jaywalking is not in the Criminal Code and is not considered a criminal offence in Canada. No law on jaywalking exists at the federal level, although several provinces, territories, and municipalities have enacted regulations or by-laws that restrict when a pedestrian may cross a roadway. Enforcement of these provincial regulations and municipal by-laws remains extremely rare. Section 144 of Ontario's Highway Traffic Act permits pedestrians to cross a roadway when they are not adjacent to a marked crosswalk and they yield to oncoming traffic, although the same section also requires them to use a marked crosswalk to cross the roadway when they are near one. Similar traffic regulations also exist in Quebec's highway safety code, and Saskatchewan's Traffic Safety Act. Most of these provincial regulations, in addition to municipal by-laws, do not use the term jaywalking to describe when a pedestrian unlawfully crosses a roadway. As a result of differing provincial/territorial regulations and/or municipal by-laws, the fine that is charged for crossing a motorway varies across the country, from C$30 in Quebec, to C$697.50 in Nova Scotia. In Ontario, motorway crossing related fines are typically charged under section 144 of the Highway Traffic Act, or a municipal by-law, with an average fine of C$35; although the maximum fine a pedestrian can be charged under the Ontario's Highway Traffic Act is C$50. =====California===== On 30 September 2022, California governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill decriminalizing jaywalking in the state of California. The bill, 2022 AB-2147, known as The Freedom to Walk Act, was initially introduced by Assembly member Phil Ting (D-19). It bars law enforcement from stopping and citing a pedestrian for "safe mid-block crossings" except in the circumstances where "a reasonably careful person would realize there is an immediate danger of a collision". This bill amended Section 21955 of the California Vehicle Code to include this provision. It also states that it does not relieve a pedestrian from the duty of using due care for his or her safety. =====Safety considerations===== In the United States, jaywalking is linked to pedestrian injuries and fatalities, but no available data provide an exact risk rate because of missing jaywalking frequency data. In the United States, jaywalking is mainly an urban issue (71%), but it can also be a suburban or rural issue when no sidewalk is available. In the United States, jaywalking might be understood as: walking against a pedestrian walk signal, crossing a street where there is no crosswalk (midblock crossing), crossing a street outside of a marked crosswalk where one is present, and walking on a street along with the traffic flow (ignoring designated pedestrian pathways). However other pedestrian behavior might be considered as unsafe while not qualified of jaywalking, for instance, failure of drivers to yield for pedestrians, jogging/walking in the wrong direction, working on a parked car, leaning on a parked car, pushing a disabled car, standing between parked cars, and standing in a road. Some pedestrian factors that lead to a jaywalking behavior were found to be pedestrian perceptions of risk, consumption of alcohol, perceptions of crossing devices, speed and pace of life, speed versus crossing-device speed, perceptions of enforcement risk, unawareness of pedestrian laws and safety, following the leader. Some known environmental factors include absence of midblock crosswalks, width of roads, poor timing of crossing signals, poor conditions of sidewalks, absence of sidewalks in certain areas, capacity of sidewalks, weather, people with limited mobility, people with occupational risks, children and teens, parking areas near shopping centers, street repair and construction sites, major highways, one-way streets, location of attractions, and unlawful street-vending. =====Racial bias===== In California, differences by race in charging of pedestrians for jaywalking has led to assertions of racial bias and proposals to end considering jaywalking to be an offense. California Assembly member Phil Ting proposed decriminalizing jaywalking. The bill, AB 2147, The Freedom To Walk Act, passed by the legislature and signed by Governor Gavin Newsom, took effect on January 1, 2023. Seattle City Council members Bruce Harrell and Lorena González raised issues of bias in jaywalking tickets in that city as well. ===Oceania=== ==See also== Automotive city Effects of the car on societies Green transport hierarchy Misdemeanor Pedestrian crossing Pedestrian village Rat running Reclaim the Streets Red flag traffic laws Shared space Walkability ==Notes== ==References== ==Further reading== ==External links== What every Brit should know about jaywalking; BBC News

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