The only time you are allowed to enter onto the road way at a signalized intersection is when the pedestrian control facing the direction you want to travel indicates a walk symbol. If there is no pedestrian control, you can only enter the roadway when the green light is on for the direction you want to travel.
If the don't walk symbol is illuminated either flashing or solid, you can not enter onto the roadway. You must remain off the roadway until a walk symbol is on.
If there is a countdown timer with the don't walk symbol you can not enter the roadway.
The flashing don't walk symbol, solid don't walk symbol and countdown timer are only indications that the lights are about to change and if you are on the roadway, you better get off before cross traffic commences.
We need to get this rule changed. It's illogical, unreasonable, and vaguely insulting. The countdown timer tells us exactly how much time we have. We can therefore use it to make certain that we have enough time to get across the street. For example, I cross Yonge St. several times a day, and I know with absolute certainty that it takes me 11 seconds to do so at my normal walking pace. Therefore, if there are 15 seconds left on the timer, I have time to get across safely. (You might be thinking "But that's only 4 seconds leeway!" Yes, but it's 36% more time than I need, plus I still do have the option of speeding up from my normal walking pace.) I've seen a 30-second timer on a 2-lane street. What's the point of that? What is gained by keeping people on the sidewalk for a whole nother light cycle when the timer is clearly showing they have far more time than they'll ever need?
Before the timers were installed, I'd occasionally take my chances with the flashing hand, and sometimes I'd end up still in the crosswalk when the light turned red. When the timers were installed, I started timing myself and soon gained a good sense of how many seconds it takes me to cross any given street. Because of that, I enter the crosswalk when the hand is flashing far more often, but I have never - not once - found myself caught in the crosswalk on red on a timed light. The timers give me the information I need, so I'm not gambling.
Ticketing someone for entering a timed crosswalk where they clearly have enough time just because the hand is flashing is akin to ticketing someone for doing 80 in an 80 zone just because there's a 50 zone further up the road. I would very much like to know exactly which piece of legislation this falls under so I know which elected representative I should write to to get it changed. Until we can make that happen, I hope the Toronto Police will use their professional judgement and discretion and only issue tickets on flashing timed crosswalks when the pedestrian hasn't made good use of the timer and has ended up still in the crosswalk on red.
5 comments:
Do the police here actually ticket for this?
They've been "cracking down" lately because there have been a number of pedestrians killed by cars. It's all rather ridiculous for quite a number of reasons, but the bit I bolded in my post is the most objectively flawed rule.
I heard about the pedestrian deaths but not about the crack down.
Rudy Giuliani once tried to crack down on J-walking in NYC, to great hilarity. At some intersections, he had barriers put up making it impossible to cross anywhere but at the corner!
In theory pedestrians have the right of way, but the police and urban traffic planners don't see it that way.
Pedestrians do not have the right of way under the Ontario Highway Traffic Act, except when crossing in a controlled marked crosswalk (i.e: at a full signal, intersection pedestrian signal, pedestrian crossover or a a school crossing with the guard working the site).
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