# Is it illegal/ticketable to cut through a parking lot to avoid a traffic light? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 23, 2011, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846 "2011-11-23T04:25:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Iggins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Iggins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggins)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/21 "2011-11-23T15:55:24Z")
It was illegal in OR, at least at one time - 1990 or so. I got out of the ticket because my crappy car was about to die at the stop light, so I cut through the lot to avoid coming to a complete stop, and the officer took that as good enough reason. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/22 "2011-11-23T16:14:15Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > It was made illegal in Virginia a few years back, I recall the publicity. I wish it were enforced more stringently. There’s a bank I go where cars are constantly cutting through to avoid having to stop at the traffic light and there have been several instances in which I was almost hit by one of those speeding cutters, either while I was in my car or on foot. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/23 "2011-11-23T16:48:02Z")
> [@ProbablyProcrastinating](#): > > What if you forget to get in the right lane in time, but still have room to get into the parking lot, and then just decide to go on through? In other words, if you aren’t trying to avoid the light, but have to go right and that’s your only option? How are you in the right lane in time to turn into a parking lot, but not in time to turn at the corner? The corner would be past the entrance to the parking lot. Piling on, but illegal in Ann Arbor, MI as well. Not sure if it’s a city or state law. ---
**Author:** ![BlinkingDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eada6e/32.png) [@BlinkingDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlinkingDuck)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/24 "2011-11-23T16:55:11Z")
> [@Skammer](#): > > I had an old roommate who cut through a mall parking lot to get to the opposite cross-street and was pulled over and ticketed for “avoiding a traffic control device” (stoplight) or something similar. This was in the Chicago suburbs. Friend of mine had the same…in Minnesota. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/25 "2011-11-23T17:11:31Z")
Found a citation: [Virginia Driver’s Manual](http://www.dmv.state.va.us/webdoc/pdf/dmv39c.pdf) (Section 2: Signals, Signs and Pavement Markings) [Warning: .pdf] > [@](#): > > It is illegal to avoid these traffic controls by cutting through a parking lot or field. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/26 "2011-11-23T18:58:10Z")
What about: Sorry officer, I turned into this (gas station, strip mall, empty lot) in order to (get gas, shop at the plaza, read a map) and then realized that (the gas station close to home has better prices, the stores are closed, realized where I was at when I saw the crossing street). ? ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/27 "2011-11-23T19:16:11Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > Sorry officer, I turned into this (gas station, strip mall, empty lot) in order to (get gas, shop at the plaza, read a map) and then realized that (the gas station close to home has better prices, the stores are closed, realized where I was at when I saw the crossing street). > [@Police Officer](#): > > Tell it to the judge. Here you go, have a nice day. .. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/28 "2011-11-23T21:53:59Z")
> [@Shmendrik](#): > > [Here’s](http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/fulltext.asp?DocName=062500050K11-305) a slightly bigger jurisdiction than Westerville which prohibits it: This is also the law in SC. Not surprisingly, since this is in the Uniform Motor Vehicle Act, which is fairly uniform in all the states. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/29 "2011-11-23T21:54:07Z")
Interesting to hear different locations’ takes on it. I seemed to remember that it was illegal (at least in AZ where I grew up and learned to drive) but couldn’t remember where I heard it, or if I just imagined it. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/30 "2011-11-24T04:46:52Z")
It’s illegal in Cleveland, Ohio, too, and is charged as “Shortcutting at intersections,” punishable by a $150 fine and two points against your license. I believe it’s a violation of the Ohio Revised Code, too, but I’ve never seen it charged under that, just under the local ordinance. ---
**Author:** ![Avarie537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@Avarie537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avarie537)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/31 "2011-11-24T23:01:19Z")
Yes, it’s illegal in Indiana. There’s a locksmith on a busy corner near my house that went so far as to installed concrete pylons in the parking lot to keep people from using it as a pass-through. ---
**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:** [November 24, 2011, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/32 "2011-11-24T23:16:23Z")
> [@echoreply](#): > > (Not bothering to look up the statute) In Colorado there is such a traffic law. You must stop in the parking lot someplace other than a stop sign or the exit of the parking lot, or you are guilty of avoiding a traffic control device, or some such. > > If I am coming to work from a certain street it is much faster to make a left into a gas station, and then exit through the rear of the gas station onto the street adjoining my work’s parking lot. I rarely go that way, but when I do, I always make sure to come to a complete stop in front of a gas pump, and then proceed, so I’m technically fulfilling the requirements of the Colorado law. “Your honor, once I pulled up and saw that gas was $.15 higher than the station down the street, I just decided to fill up on the way home from work, yeah, that’s the ticket.” CRS, Title 42 doesn’t seem to have this law of which you speak ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/33 "2011-11-25T04:27:13Z")
Having owned a gas station on the corner of a very busy intersection, I’m damn glad that it’s illegal. If anyone could “cut the corner”, the merchant would have extra liability for the safety of their patrons as well as increased asphalt maintenance. ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/34 "2011-11-25T05:05:59Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > CRS, Title 42 doesn’t seem to have this law of which you speak It turns out what I was thinking of is part of the Boulder Revised Code, [Chapter 7-4 Section 9](http://www.colocode.com/boulder2/chapter7-4.htm#section7_4_9). ---
**Author:** ![Ostrya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/35a633/32.png) [@Ostrya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ostrya)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 9:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/35 "2011-11-25T09:16:46Z")
Illegal in MI, like ZenBeam said. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/36 "2011-11-25T22:56:31Z")
Illegal in Florida. “Avoiding traffic control device.” ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/37 "2011-11-25T23:03:38Z")
For those places where it’s confirmed illegal: Can you circumvent the law by stopping the car and opening the door, then closing it and continuing on, which was what I was told was necessary to get around the law in AZ? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2011, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/38 "2011-11-26T01:23:35Z")
No law can be circumvented so easily. If the cop thinks you were trying to fool him, he’ll give you a ticket and let you explain to the judge what you were doing. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2011, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/39 "2011-11-26T02:47:19Z")
> [@ZenBeam](#): > > How are you in the right lane in time to turn into a parking lot, but not in time to turn at the corner? The corner would be past the entrance to the parking lot. > > Piling on, but illegal in Ann Arbor, MI as well. Not sure if it’s a city or state law. I’m pretty sure there’s a state law that bans “circumventing a traffic control device” or words to that effect. And driving through someone’s parking lot to avoid the light is pretty much what they had in mind when they wrote the law. ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2011, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846/40 "2011-11-26T05:04:47Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > For those places where it’s confirmed illegal: Can you circumvent the law by stopping the car and opening the door, then closing it and continuing on, which was what I was told was necessary to get around the law in AZ? The [Boulder law](http://www.colocode.com/boulder2/chapter7-4.htm#section7_4_9) I referred to says you’ve committed an offense if you cut through a parking lot\* without making a stop off of the street in addition to and before the stop required by [section 7-4-15](http://www.colocode.com/boulder2/chapter7-4.htm#section7_4_15) “Stop Before Entering Street Required.” \*So I think in Boulder, Colorado you don’t even have to open your door. The cop might say to you, “tell it to the judge,” but it looks pretty easy to adhere to the word of the law, even if you’re violating the spirit. Clearly the intention is that you stop in the parking lot because you have business there, but it doesn’t say that. Not having any experience with traffic court, I have no idea if a ticket would stick, even if you could prove (surveillance video, or some such) that you made the required complete stop, even though your real purpose of entering the parking lot was to cut through. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-ticketable-to-cut-through-a-parking-lot-to-avoid-a-traffic-light/603846.md?page=3)