Sidewalks

[80watts]

Last week as I was approaching an intersection (in a car) in the right hand lane. I was going to make a right hand turn. There was this teenager about 15 feet from the intersection, he runs to make the crosswalk, and when he is about 2 feet into the crosswalk, he stops, looks around and sees me ready to turn right. He pauses and then continues to walk slowly across the intersection. WTF?

That not all, I have noticed that people when they cross at the intersections that have lights, start off briskly, a few feet in they look up and notice a car ready to turn right ahead of them, they slow down, they walk more slowly, people behind them actually pass them on the crosswalk.

I actually now think there are some people out there that actually do this on purpose. Why ? Is it there way of pissing at the world?

There is a new rule out there for drivers, you cannot turn right when there are persons on the crosswalk. The Pendulum.

So cars pay insurance. Car need gas which is taxed. All this tax and insurance is used to pay for the roads and sidewalks. What do the pedestrians pay? Nothing, its free......

Some people that see that car that wants to turn, actually increase your pace; so that the car can turn? Those people are drivers....

 

[islander1-1]

Depends on the age of the pedestrian... REminds me of a short video gone viral a while ago... very elderly lady enters the crosswalk at a stop sign in front of a late model mercedes convertible with a young driver. She is doing her best but the driver gets impatient and blows his horn... she thumps his grill with her big handbag.... setting off his airbag..

But yes I agree I see this regularly.

 

[ddcanz]

Most pedestrians are oblivious of their surroundings, self absorbed and also couldn't give a fuck in general how their actions affect drivers at crosswalks and intersections.
Same goes for drivers that never check their mirrors to see who is waiting behind them and might want to ALSO get through an intersection before the light changes.
This has gotten steadily worse for years with no sign of correction. Welcome to the lower mainland.
Take a breath and control your own actions and attitude- it's really all that you can do to avoid losing your mind.
But I agree- there are a lot of chimps that are deliberately being shit heads.

 

[VanessainVictoria]

We differ on this. I am a pedestrian and a former car driver, so I have experience in both forms of transportation.

What I notice is drivers on a race to the white line, sometimes by the speed they're going you wonder if this will be it. Then, as you're crossing in the crosswalk the car is inching, inching forward like the six inches you might gain from encroaching the sidewalk will help you get further faster. Then there are those who fully block the sidewalk, expecting us to walk around them. They have no regard for pedestrian safety or the rules of the road and when you tell them they are in a pedestrian area they become belligerent.

My driving instructor asked me " Who has the right of way??" Waiting for pedestrians to cross is part of driving. You can get where you need to go faster than I and if its snowing or raining be even more cautious. Thank you

Depends on the age of the pedestrian... REminds me of a short video gone viral a while ago... very elderly lady enters the crosswalk at a stop sign in front of a late model mercedes convertible with a young driver. She is doing her best but the driver gets impatient and blows his horn... she thumps his grill with her big handbag.... setting off his airbag..

Blowing your horn in the intersection has got to be the rudest.

 

[ddcanz]

We differ on this. I am a pedestrian and a former car driver, so I have experience in both forms of transportation.
QUOTE]

We are all pedestrians at one time or another.
We are not all drivers though.
So EVERY driver would have experience with this.
I think you missed his point- that pedestrians purposely impede traffic. Or as I note above are completely oblivious to it.
Is it too much to show some courtesy to a driver that might otherwise have to wait another round of lights?- when simply being aware and moving your ass thoughtfully across the road might be to the advantage of vehicular traffic?
IMO there are more asshole pedestrians than there are asshole drivers.
But you are correct- peds have the right of way and it falls upon the driver to hold up.

 

[CanineCowboy]

We differ on this. I am a pedestrian and a former car driver, so I have experience in both forms of transportation.
QUOTE]

We are all pedestrians at one time or another.
We are not all drivers though.
So EVERY driver would have experience with this.
I think you missed his point- that pedestrians purposely impede traffic. Or as I note above are completely oblivious to it.
Is it too much to show some courtesy to a driver that might otherwise have to wait another round of lights?- when simply being aware and moving your ass thoughtfully across the road might be to the advantage of vehicular traffic?
IMO there are more asshole pedestrians than there are asshole drivers.
But you are correct- peds have the right of way and it falls upon the driver to hold up.

Spoken like a true car driver.

 

[ddcanz]

Spoken like a true car driver.

Yes- one who is quite aware of my surroundings and also the rules of the road.

 

[MissingOne]

... That not all, I have noticed that people when they cross at the intersections that have lights, start off briskly, a few feet in they look up and notice a car ready to turn right ahead of them, they slow down, they walk more slowly, people behind them actually pass them on the crosswalk.

I actually now think there are some people out there that actually do this on purpose. Why ? Is it there way of pissing at the world? ...

I'm a driver. Living in a rural area, I drive a lot. However, when I visit Vancouver, I'm usually a pedestrian. I might well be the guy you see walking through the crosswalk, who slows a bit when seeing a car readying to make the turn. Why? Because I want to see what the driver's intention is. Is the driver getting ready to hit the gas and try to accelerate through the intersection ahead of me? I want to look at the driver's eyes and know that he/she sees me and will stop or stay stopped. Once I know that, sure, I'll step smartly across to get out of the driver's way.

I try to be a defensive driver. I walk that way too, especially in the Big Smoke.

 

[uncleg]

If you are in the crosswalk legally I'll wait for you to cross, don't care how slow you are....run into the crosswalk after the the light changes, the no walking signal goes up and you are a potential hood ornament.

 

[tedsweettangv]

Roads in cities are covered by property taxes, NOT INSURANCE, NOT GAS TAX, property tax. Everybody who doesn't drive subsidizes drivers. Cars cause way more damage to both people's health and the environment than any benefit they bring and are subsidized by the health care system. I drive a car, although I try to take public transit when I can, but sometimes I am lazy. I agree that nothing comes for free but I also realize that our current society heavily subsidizes personal vehicles and just because you own a car doesn't mean you own the road. In Canada pedestrians ALWAYS have the right of way and bitching because it takes you an extra 8 seconds to get where your going is just the definition of entitlement.

 

[mercyshooter]

safety first. and the laws are generally lean towards pedestrians. so you have to be patient. it's like pedestrians are your customers.

 

[luvsdaty]

It's all about trying to push your buttons. I'll usually roll the window down and ask them if they shit their pants why they're walking so slow?
It usually gets a response of being told to fuck off at which I laugh! Good times.

 

[VanessainVictoria]

We are all pedestrians at one time or another.
We are not all drivers though.
So EVERY driver would have experience with this.
I think you missed his point- that pedestrians purposely impede traffic. Or as I note above are completely oblivious to it.
Is it too much to show some courtesy to a driver that might otherwise have to wait another round of lights?- when simply being aware and moving your ass thoughtfully across the road might be to the advantage of vehicular traffic?
IMO there are more asshole pedestrians than there are asshole drivers.
But you are correct- peds have the right of way and it falls upon the driver to hold up.

Lets agree to disagree.

 

[badbadboy]

The absolute last thing I ever want on my conscience is hitting a pedestrian whether or not they were at fault. Sure they walk in front of cars, against a Walk Signal and act like they don't have to share the road with vehicles weighing a few thousand more pounds than themselves. Most of the time they are looking at their phone while crossing the road too. You can not fix stupid.

I was walking and in a cross walk this afternoon and some A**hole almost hit me. I suspected they sped up too. So yah, there are idiots behind the wheel and on foot.

So there is no confusion about the Law in BC, I have copied and pasted the actual law from Govt of BC Motor Vehicle Act that oversees all roads in BC - INCLUDING Vancouver. ICBC insures all the drivers and City of Vancouver through property taxes ensures the roads are "reasonably" maintained.

Rights of way between vehicle and pedestrian
179 (1) Subject to section 180, the driver of a vehicle must yield the right of way to a pedestrian where traffic control signals are not in place or not in operation when the pedestrian is crossing the highway in a crosswalk and the pedestrian is on the half of the highway on which the vehicle is travelling, or is approaching so closely from the other half of the highway that he or she is in danger.
(2) A pedestrian must not leave a curb or other place of safety and walk or run into the path of a vehicle that is so close it is impracticable for the driver to yield the right of way.
(3) If a vehicle is slowing down or stopped at a crosswalk or at an intersection to permit a pedestrian to cross the highway, the driver of a vehicle approaching from the rear must not overtake and pass the vehicle that is slowing down or stopped.
(4) A pedestrian, cyclist or the driver of a motor vehicle must obey the instructions of an adult school crossing guard and of a school student acting as a member of a traffic patrol where the guards or students are
(a) provided under the School Act,
(b) authorized by the chief of police of the municipality as defined in section 36 (1), or
(c) if located on treaty lands, authorized by the chief of the police force responsible for policing the treaty lands.
Crossing at other than crosswalk
180 When a pedestrian is crossing a highway at a point not in a crosswalk, the pedestrian must yield the right of way to a vehicle.
Duty of driver
181 Despite sections 178, 179 and 180, a driver of a vehicle must
(a) exercise due care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian who is on the highway,
(b) give warning by sounding the horn of the vehicle when necessary, and
(c) observe proper precaution on observing a child or apparently confused or incapacitated person on the highway.

 

[Ms Erica Phoenix]

I have been bumped by a car while in a crosswalk: she was looking left while creeping right so she could make her turn. I quite vocally expressed my displeasure & she told.me I shouldn't have been walking across that uncontrolled intersection...

 

[gerri]

:laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh:

It's all about trying to push your buttons. I'll usually roll the window down and ask them if they shit their pants why they're walking so slow?
It usually gets a response of being told to fuck off at which I laugh! Good times.

Hahaha! I haven't the patience for it either. I've said a few comments myself. I don't give a shit, I'm a asshole ?

 

[80watts]

Geri you might like this song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrgpZ0fUixs

 

[HornyGandalfREDUX]

What a different world I live in (Vietnam), where crossing roads is an adventure and dodging traffic IS the only way to get across. Crosswalks exist, but I’m not sure anyone knows why as pedestrians sure don’t have right-of-way. The crazy thing is, you can have the cross lights green for pedestrians AND green lights for traffic to go through the crosswalk. Red lights are frequently seen as ‘advisory’, particularly by motorcyclists (of which there are about 4.5 million in the city I’m living in). U-turns in the middle of narrow streets are also normal. Sidewalks are for parking your bikes. Pedestrians often have to walk along the road if the sidewalk is blocked with bikes. And there is a maximum penalty of 15 years for jaywalking (if your jaywalking results in an accident causing 4 or more deaths... though apparently it has never happened).
It is a very different world.