A man openly jaywalking in St Albans city centre
I just can’t do it. It’s 8am on a Sunday morning and I’m standing on a pavement in Tallinn. I can see half a mile of empty road stretching into the distance. Yet I’m supposed to wait; wait for the green man to let me know I can safely cross the 5 metres of road that separate me from my onward travels. Inevitably I lose patience and make my way onto the forbidden territory that separates me from my onward journey, pretending not to notice the disapproving stares I earn from the other pedestrians.
Here in the UK, to wait for the lights to change in such a situation would be almost unheard of. Yet in many parts of the world, daring to cross the road on a red signal will result in a fine or worse. Singapore carries a maximum penalty of 3 months in jail (rarely enforced). In most of northern Europe a transgressor will be the subject of disapproving stares and head shaking, and quite often a spot fine.
When we travel to other countries, learning how to cross a road is one of the first dilemmas that we face. Should we or shouldn’t we follow the signals? Different countries on the same continent adopt very different approaches – try crossing the road with your best Japanese etiquette when in the centre of Delhi, or with the Belgian sense of discipline when in Rome. Even in the US you can see different patterns of behaviour across the country. When we lived in Manhattan I soon learnt to watch the cars rather than lights when walking to work. Yet that same approach would risk unwelcome police attention in other states.
It’s not just a question of etiquette or culture. The strategy we adopt to get across a road can, in the case of some countries (Italy and Greece in Europe, and much of SE Asia spring to mind) be a matter of life and death. Wait for someone to let you cross, and you’ll be waiting a very long time. Hesitate as you cross and you’ll be roadkill.
So what’s the best approach? When you arrive in a new city, it’s wise to observe how local people behave when they cross the road. Do they use marked crossings? Are there actually any crossings or do people cross anywhere? Do people follow the rules and wait for a green man before they cross? Do drivers consider traffic lights as anything more than pretty street furniture?
If you find yourself in a place where the rules are strictly enforced, then you may just have to grin and bear it while you stand on that empty curb and wait for the lights to change. If you just can’t manage it, you better take a good look-out not only for cars but also for the lurking policeman, who might just make your illegal crossing a very expensive one.
The situation in England reminds me Boston where people often cross the road without looking either way. They take the “Pedestrian right of way” and abuse it. I’ve been in the Boston area for 18 years and its still my biggest pet peeve about living here. Not only do we have the worst drivers in the world but also the worst pedestrians…not a good combination.
Haha I love this! It’s true that we Brits have very little regard for mere trafficlights (we wouldn’t want that nanny state interfering in our ability to judge when a road is safe to cross, would we?). It is a dangerous activity however, because British drivers also like to disregard the idea that pedestrians have the right of way. Oh well… If we didn’t risk death on the way to work then we wouldn’t have enough to grumble about would we!
But, that does make it tough to restrain yourself when in a country who expect road rules to be followed. Certainly one to watch out for!
It’s a window into the attitude of the people I suppose. Having almost been run down in Spain and France I agree that you need to see what the locals do.
I remember after arriving in Vancouver, I was waiting on the pavement of a residential road, and a car stopped to let me cross… I was just confused! I looked at the driver and he waved me across, so I hesitantly crossed the road, with a wonky grin on my face. It took me days to adjust.
I guess that as long as drivers and pedestrians know what’s expected of them, the system wil work (in its own way). I do find the wait excruciating on an empty street – but then again if we’re in the same situation in a car we never question the need to obey the lights…
Thanks to all for the comments
So true! We are trying hard to teach our son to cross when the sign is green, but living in the UK he just sees everyone else ignoring it, so it is so hard. And traffic management is so bad here, that it seems to take forever for the pedestrian light to go green …
My husband was told off by an old lady in Austria for crossing before the pedestrian light went green. He was nearly killed by a car when he did wait for the light to go green at a crossing in Italy, and a driver blithely ignored the pedestrian crossing. So as you say, it can be a good idea to try and figure out what the local rules are (though that is not always easy).
Interesting point as I never even thought about the differences in the way we cross the road and the way it varies from one place to the next. Here in Chicago it is a lot like New York and many cross wherever they feel like it.
Agree, agree, agree. As you know, here in the UK it is like a sport to see who can dart across the road fast enough. The only penalty seems to be getting hit by a car.
It’s maddening to go abroad and just stand there. But yes, it’s often the rules. I tend to just do what everyone else does. Strength in numbers.
Holy cow, ,thank you for telling me about Singapore’s rules – I’ll be there in a few days. Toronto seems to be very much following the walk-now, stop-now, follow the signs process which I do like. I don’t really care for the crazy jaywalkers and in fact, in Zurich, if a car hits you when you are jaywalking, it’s your own fault….now that seems to me fair and square. :)! Wait for the green light. What do you lose, 3 seconds? :)!
As a Londoner I tend to step in the road whenever I feel like it. The traffic is usually going so slowly that being hit by a car would result in little more than a small bruise.
Sounds like you’ll be ok with the rules in Singapore Farnoosh – it’s us Brits that need worry most! In our defence I think our traffic management systems are so badly thought out that if on a long walk through London you stopped at every red light and waited you could easily add half an hour to your journey, not just a few seconds. Perhaps it’s set up with non-compliance in mind…
Funny observation. Also had to observe people’s crossing habits in Hong Kong when I went there. I followed suit when I realized that they didn’t really follow the traffic lights in deciding whether to cross or not.
Thanks Cedric. Don’t know if the Chinese or the British influence is responsible for this – but yes, the lights act as a useful advisory but that’s all