# F You! (Tourists in Crosswalks) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 17, 2014, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999 "2014-06-17T17:37:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/21 "2014-06-17T20:47:44Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > But nobody ever called Pablo Picasso an asshole. Of course, if he had tried to stare down drivers approaching a crosswalk … ---
**Author:** ![Macca26](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/13edae/32.png) [@Macca26](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Macca26)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/22 "2014-06-17T21:21:20Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > In fairness, I doubt the OP is zooming by people waiting to cross. I will trust that he is concerned only with the oblivious pedestrians who wander into the crosswalk without looking to see if it’s safe, which means he has to pay extra attention to avoid running them over. > > But here’s the thing: the law says you, as the driver, have to pay extra attention. It is your responsibility to avoid an accident. And you can easily do that by driving more slowly, watching for people, and leaving a safe distance between you and other cars. Yeah, it’s annoying that you can’t drive as fast as you want while the pedestrian can walk into the street without waiting. Tough shit, deal with it. My heart bleeds for you. Technically, in my state it is illegal for a pedestrian to cross the street without a green signal or walk sign (at intersections with lights). While it’s true the onus is first on the driver and then on the pedestrian to follow the law, the pedestrians are still doing something illegal. I get mad every time someone illegally walks in front of my car because even if they’re the ones doing something illegal, if I hit them by accident then that takes precedence anyway. ---
**Author:** ![watchwolf49](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9c0ed/32.png) [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/23 "2014-06-17T21:42:01Z")
> [@convextech](#): > > If you think it’s bad there, try Vegas. Vegas is building skywalks up and down the Strip. They also are fencing off the streets from the sidewalks. But, yeah, that crosswalk in front of Caesar’s Palace is a bit dangerous. The OP lives where others vacation … I don’t see a problem here. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/24 "2014-06-17T21:44:27Z")
> [@Macca26](#): > > Technically, in my state it is illegal for a pedestrian to cross the street without a green signal or walk sign (at intersections with lights). While it’s true the onus is first on the driver and then on the pedestrian to follow the law, the pedestrians are still doing something illegal. I get mad every time someone illegally walks in front of my car because even if they’re the ones doing something illegal, if I hit them by accident then that takes precedence anyway. That’s fine. But we’re talking about states/localities where a driver must stop for a pedestrian at a cross walk, and it is not up to the pedestrian to wait. The pedestrian is not doing anything illegal. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/25 "2014-06-17T22:01:27Z")
> [@Sterling\_Archer](#): > > I agree with the OP. A crosswalk is not a license to jump in front of moving vehicles. I also agree. There is no cause for speeding nor running thru crosswalks nor a driver acting like he owns the road. **BUT** that does not absolve pedestrians from looking out for their own safety. Even at 25 mph, cars take time and room to stop. That moving mass of fiberglass and metal will do more damage to the pedestrian than the pedestrian will do to it. **BOTH** participants in this dance need to have respect for one another. Having the right of way isn’t going to make one’s vacation better when your spend most of it in the hospital, if one is lucky. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/26 "2014-06-17T22:19:19Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > As a driver, I’ve been a block or two from a marked crosswalk and I see a pedestrian at the crosswalk, waiting for me to come to the intersection and stop before the pedestrian proceeds. Whereas if they had just walked across the intersection, they would have been on the other side by the time I crossed it. Drives me nuts. Let me guess, you don’t walk much, do you? Never almost been run down by some driver who ignores the marked crosswalk, or can’t be bothered to put down his goddamn i-thing long enough to notice there is someone there? I’d rather drive you nuts than have you drive over my legs. [QUOTE=Telemark] Rant fail. 2/10 [/QUOTE] I’m going to give him an additional point for the salubrious phrase “goddamn i-things” which I appropriated above. It’s the first time I’ve seen it (but I don’t get out much). [QUOTE=Mr. Miskatonic] Well I love how people are so quick to assume anyone using a crosswalk is just diving in front of the fastest car they see. I’d wager the reality is that they decided to cross after getting fed up car after car after car pretending not to notice them and refusing to yield. I’d bet the drivers are just annoyed with being forced to stop for once. [/QUOTE] There’s a crosswalk near where I live that’s like that all the time. It’s a right-hand curve off of one busy street onto a kind of boulevard where the drivers then get to go a while without a stoplight. Woe betide the poor pedestrian who wants to cross there. I have stood there for several minutes at a time waiting for a break in traffic, because those drivers are damned if they’re going to stop at a crosswalk just because someone wants to cross. I make eye contact with as many of them as I can, but they pretend they don’t see me. And I’m not about to interpose my frail body between them and their boulevard just to make a point. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/27 "2014-06-17T23:02:29Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > As a driver, I’ve been a block or two from a marked crosswalk and I see a pedestrian at the crosswalk, waiting for me to come to the intersection and stop before the pedestrian proceeds. Whereas if they had just walked across the intersection, they would have been on the other side by the time I crossed it. Drives me nuts. It’s worse where I live. They take a few steps out into the crosswalk right into the path of my car, and then wait for me to get there and stop before proceeding. Hey, fuck-head, if you think I’m not going to stop, why are you standing in the middle of the damn street!? Either keep going, or don’t step out into the crosswalk in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![CoastalMaineiac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@CoastalMaineiac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoastalMaineiac)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/28 "2014-06-17T23:24:36Z")
Yielding to pedestrians is the same idea as yielding to cars. The crosswalk is an implied yield sign. Remember what you’re supposed to do at one of those? Slow down to an appropriate speed and be prepared to stop if it is necessary. If you are constantly having to slam on your brakes to stop at yield signs, you are approaching them too fast. The same applies at crosswalks. If you were to approach a yield sign at a blind intersection, would you be bitching about cross traffic the same way you are now bitching about pedestrians? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/29 "2014-06-17T23:33:43Z")
> [@CoastalMaineiac](#): > > Yielding to pedestrians is the same idea as yielding to cars. The crosswalk is an implied yield sign. Remember what you’re supposed to do at one of those? Slow down to an appropriate speed and be prepared to stop if it is necessary. The speed limit should be the appropriate speed-- you aren’t required to slow down if no one is in the crosswalk. That would be very disruptive to traffic and cause more dangerous situations with cars piling up behind you-- where I live there crosswalks in the business district at almost every block. Go the speed limit, and stop if pedestrians are in or near a crosswalk. ---
**Author:** ![CoastalMaineiac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@CoastalMaineiac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoastalMaineiac)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/30 "2014-06-17T23:47:27Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > The speed limit should be the appropriate speed-- you aren’t required to slow down if no one is in the crosswalk. That would be very disruptive to traffic and cause more dangerous situations with cars piling up behind you-- where I live there crosswalks in the business district at almost every block. Go the speed limit, and stop if pedestrians are in or near a crosswalk. The speed limit is only the appropriate speed in ideal situations. If the situation is anything less than ideal, you’re supposed to be going slower. If you are to yield the right of way, and can’t see for sure if there is anyone coming, you need to slow down to an appropriate speed. Whether it is vehicular traffic or pedestrian traffic is immaterial. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/31 "2014-06-18T00:38:25Z")
> [@Sterling\_Archer](#): > > I agree with the OP. A crosswalk is not a license to jump in front of moving vehicles. If it is by law, then it is, by law. Now, I doubt that the law actually encourages jumping, but if the law gives absolute right of way to pedestrians in cross walks, then so be it. You can be upset with it, but it does give them license to do whatever it gives them license to do (doesn’t make it a good idea, though). In my state, pedestrians only have the right of way in a crosswalk if a) they have the light, b) there’s a stop sign; c) it’s an uncontrolled intersection; d) it’s not at an intersection; or e) there’s some special marking indicating that all traffic must yield to pedestrians But, whenever a vehicle is a approaching a crosswalk where a pedestrian would have the right of way, the vehicle must not only yield to the pedestrian, it must also yield to pedestrians who are about to enter the crosswalk from the sidewalk; therefore putting the onus on the driver to be aware of pedestrian traffic on the sidewalk and when in doubt, yield. Just like anything else, if you don’t like the law you can try to have it changed. If that fails, well, democracy. But you can’t claim that people don’t have license to do something that the law specifically addresses. ---
**Author:** ![curlcoat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea5d25/32.png) [@curlcoat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curlcoat)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/32 "2014-06-18T02:58:37Z")
Those of you abusing the OP obviously don’t live in a tourist area. Here, we have them 365 days of the year, but of course summer is the worst. I don’t drive anywhere near the beach because the damn tourists _do_ walk right out in front of cars, and the PCH speed limit isn’t anything near as low as 25 mph. Because CA drivers are good at seeing trouble ahead and avoiding it, we don’t hit too many of the Darwin award nominees but damn! I don’t care if the motorists laws are on your side, how about the laws of physics? Same problem at Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm, Magic Mountain, etc ---
**Author:** ![slumtrimpet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@slumtrimpet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slumtrimpet)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 11:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/33 "2014-06-18T11:12:50Z")
I’m with the OP as well. There must be a special kind of stupid that people acquire when they go on holiday. Here they not only wander out into the street (no crosswalks btw) in the village but they also like to stop their cars in the middle of the road randomly to … I dunno, look at the scenery? FFS people, it’s a country road with a speed limit of 50(mph). There are curves and dips that make for blind spots and it’s just a little disconcerting to crest a hill or round a curve and find a car stopped dead in the middle of the road, especially when for the most part there are wide shoulders. (sometimes in the literal middle - straddling the yellow line). My husband came over one of the said crests and just missed rear-ending some twit that was _backing up_ in his lane. WTF? It’s like they think they’re on a different planet where the everyday rules of life no longer apply. Yanno, like ‘look both ways before crossing’ and don’t stop your car in the middle of the road, pull the fuck over please. thx. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/34 "2014-06-18T11:44:02Z")
There is an easy way around the OP’s problem. Just do whatever it takes to discourage tourists. Add a 100% surcharge to hotel/motel fees. Add a huge fee to cars rented to people with out of state driver’s licenses. Remove the crosswalks. Hire a PR firm to help with ads suggesting visitors go elsewhere. Piece of cake. ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/35 "2014-06-18T12:39:47Z")
Goddamn, people are annoying. And I mean those of you who are responding with such dumbass things as, “Boohoo, so you have to slow down!” I work at a university in a small college town. Every day of the year, I have to play Avoid the Asteroid with the moronic college students who blithely walk across the street in full traffic. Some of them even use the crosswalks. The speed limit is 25, which I follow, and I know students are all around, but sometimes it seems they materialize out of nowhere and are suddenly darting in front of my car with no warning. It scares the shit out of me, and then I get mad. I’m sure the OP doesn’t want to run these people over, and that’s why he’s upset. It’s not because OH NO NOW I’M 10 SECONDS LATE GRRRRR, it’s because he’s sick of people being so careless with their lives that they put him in the position of nearly killing them. ---
**Author:** ![BorgHunter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@BorgHunter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BorgHunter)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/36 "2014-06-18T13:08:03Z")
**gallows fodder** , there’s a difference between people wandering around the street randomly, and people crossing at a crosswalk. There is nothing wrong with crossing at a crosswalk, and in my jurisdiction, vehicular traffic is required to yield. I’ve grumped at a fair number of idiotic pedestrians from my bike, due to their insistence at crossing the street in random positions and not noticing me until they’re _directly in my path_, at which point they freeze and give me a deer-in-headlights look. That’s _annoying as hell_ because if this idiot causes an accident there’ll probably be _two_ goddamn injuries. Pitting of these peds is heartily endorsed. But marked, uncontrolled crosswalks? Pedestrians have right of way. If I can deal with that on a fucking bike where stopping means I have to pedal hard when I can actually go, then you can deal with it in a fucking car where all you have to do is shift your right foot a little bit. Jesus. ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/37 "2014-06-18T13:15:41Z")
They do have right of way, but Jesus Christ, could they not just dart out in front of you like a crazy person and force you to slam on your brakes lest you kill them? I’ve been rear-ended twice because of nutball students not understanding that their right of way doesn’t trump the laws of physics. Wait at the curb, make eye-contact with the car approaching, and then calmly cross the street. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/38 "2014-06-18T13:18:52Z")
Yeah I think that was the gist of the OP. Not ranting over stopping for them but having the peds step out in front of the car creating a “Holy SHit! Lock up the brakes! Am I going to hit them!” moment. It’s all good and well to talk about speed limits but if you’re 5 feet away from the crosswalk and they decide the NOW they need to cross, that’s not really a speed limit issue now is it? FYI in Denver, jaywalking seems to be standard so I get the OP’s rant. Just the other day, some guy was standing in the middle of the street in the crosswalk blocking cars from making a left turn because he just had to eat some french fries then and there. ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/39 "2014-06-18T13:20:50Z")
And AGAIN. This has nothing to do with ~~OH THE POOR INCONVENIENCE OF MAKING ME MOVE MY FOOT TO ANOTHER PEDAL.~~ Please don’t run across the street in front of me when I’m mere feet from the crosswalk. E: What Saint Cad said. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999/40 "2014-06-18T13:37:14Z")
This is what the OP said: > [@](#): > > they fail to use common sense when crossing the street and take advantage of a well-intended but dumb law. Said law requires motorists to come to a complete stop if a pedestrian is in a marked crosswalk. So he dislikes the law outright, not the pedestrians taking advantage of it. And his concern about the consequences: > [@](#): > > The result is more rear end collisions as people slam on their brakes to stop If there are rear end collisions then somebody was driving too fucking close. > [@](#): > > for the idiots who walk out without looking, pausing or taking their faces out of their goddamn i-things. Just yesterday a group of these morons, including little kids walked right out in front me. No pause at the curb. No looking left or right . Nothing. I was doing the 25 mph limit but still had to get on the brakes hard to stop in time He’s blaming the tourists for not looking - but they had the right of way and he was the one going the full speed limit. I’ve lived in a tourist town. No sympathy for the OP. You put up with it or you move elsewhere. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/f-you-tourists-in-crosswalks/690999.md?page=3)