As warmer weather results in more pedestrian traffic, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office would like to remind both pedestrians and motorists of the rules of the road when dealing with crosswalks.
Pedestrians crossing at marked crosswalks, without pedestrian control devices, need to make sure there is a natural safe void in traffic before entering the roadway. In other words, pedestrians cannot jump in front of vehicles in the crosswalk when it is not safe or possible for the vehicle to stop. Pedestrians often feel a false sense of security when they are in a marked crosswalk. As a reminder, maintain eye contact with the motoring public to ensure a safe crossing.
Motorists have responsibilities as well. Once a pedestrian enters the roadway, motorists are required to allow the pedestrian to cross safely.
On a multi-lane roadway in opposite directions, if the pedestrian is within one lane of your vehicle on either side, you are required to stay stopped until the pedestrian is at least two lanes away from your vehicle. On a one-way road, if any vehicle is stopped at an intersection, all vehicles are required to stop. This is required because more often than not, the vehicle stopped at the intersection will obstruct the view of the pedestrian attempting to cross the road.
Finally, any intersection in Spokane County is considered a cross walk, including T-intersections and roundabouts. It does not matter if the intersection is marked with the crosswalk markings or not.
Reader Comments(0)