Poll: Walking through a red light

[Llil]

I would imagine that it would be the driver's fault if it was a red light for traffic, regardless of whether the pedestrian was permitted to cross. Driver's have legal responsibility for their vehicle. Lets face it, if a pedestrian walked into a car, the driver wouldn't be at risk.

I meant red light for pedestrians, green for traffic. Still, I think the driver gets the blame.

 

[Oliver Sadler]

After recently being nailed by a car, I always wait for the green light. Even though it was green when i crossed during the accident. Moral of the story: Some people shouldn't drive cars.

 

[Jack Rascal]

If I get squished, then it's my own fault, really.

The way I view it is that if I get hurt through my own irresponsibility, then that's my fault and no-one else's. If, however, I were to be in a position where I could injure or kill someone else through irresponsibility, then that's a totally different story.

But you are in a position to hurt someone when you cross a red light. The problem with your view is that the situation would most likely not be how you imagine. You might think that when you're crossing you might get hurt and that's it. That's no quite how it would go. If you cross the red light and car is coming, they are not just going to drive over you (I do hope). They will hit the breaks and do their best to avoid you. They might loose control of their car, hit a lamppost, hit another car or cause collision with a car behind. In worst case scenario they might hit another pedestrian in their panic to avoid you.

I understand crossing a red light if there's nobody around (middle of the night and for some stupid reason the lights are still on). But running around between cars I find irresponsible. I'm not saying you do, but I did get that image from your posts

 

[Entraboard]

Not only do I walk the red-lights, sometimes I'll do a little dance.

Kidding aside, here in Mexico nobody follows the rules of the road (seriously, it's more dangerous to make a full stop at a STOP sign than to just power on through: the car behind you won't stop (i.e. it'll crash into you) and the cars crossing are expecting you to run the STOP sign). Never in my life have I seen someone pulled over or fined for running a red light... NEVER.
After 10 PM, you can even legally (not that it matters) run a red light if you make a full stop... most people just make rolling stops (myself included... except in crossings I know to be dangerous).

It's an urban jungle out there, and in the law of the jungle the most savage wins.

So be it on foot or on wheels, I'll run a red light if I perceive it to be safe.

 

[Abengoshis]

In England, with our really thin roads, I do it whenever I feel it's safe, which is quite a lot of the time. On wider roads I don't.

 

[The-Epicly-Named-Man]

I'm sorry? Walking through a red light? I'm not quite sure what that means. I will cross the road when a traffic light's green if I don't see a car coming, if that's what you mean.

People do say "driving through a red light", so I thought that was fine. But yes, that's what I meant.

Fair enough, it just confused me a bit. Also, for future reference, I think Americans call it jaywalking.

 

[sinterklaas]

Do it in a car, and the red light cameras will catch you and politely mail you a ticket.

Do it by foot, and you only get caught if a cop is there. In that case, you wouldn't be walking anyway because one of the requirements to cross in the first place is for no cars to be there.

This is why people do it.

I know I asked why people do it, and that's probably the reason for most. But what it's saying is that it's okay to break any rules when it's easy to get away with it. And that doesn't sound too good to me.

Rules serve a purpose. When that purpose is not present, you don't have to follow the rule.

You strike me as one of 'those' people, who think the law and rules are holy and should never be broken.

If nothing is coming from either direction and it's not a crowded place I'll cross the street whenever I feel like it. I'm not going to waste my time standing around waiting on nothing.

 

[Llil]

You strike me as one of 'those' people, who think the law and rules are holy and should never be broken.

Yes, I do think laws shouldn't be broken, and that's why there's penalties for doing so. To discourage breaking the law.

I wouldn't say the law is "holy" or that there isn't some laws that I don't agree with, but that doesn't mean I'm free to break them if they are an inconvinience.

 

[Housebroken Lunatic]

I don't really have a better answer than "because that's just how it goes". I don't like to break rules even when it does no harm. It's really not a big problem to wait for the green light, so that's what I do.

Well if you look at it like this:

Consider the future where you lie on your deathbed at really old age, thinking back of your life and wishing you just had a bit more time. Do you really believe that you're going to think "Gee, I sure am glad I followed all those rules, even the ones that pretty much cost me precious seconds of my very own lifetime"?

Every time you stand there at a street crossing and pedantically wait for the light to turn green when you would be just as safe strolling across long before the light does change is some time you won't ever get back. You're very life is slipping through your fingers when you wait. Do you really think it'll be worth it in the end?

 

[Actual]

It's illegal to drive through a red light, it's perfectly legal to cross when there's no little green man.

Except, apparently, in some U.S. states (jaywalking lol).

 

[Kenjitsuka]

In Amsterdam everyone who lives there never looks up to see what colour the lights are when walking; no cars coming at you = walk!

 

[Llil]

Well if you look at it like this:

Consider the future where you lie on your deatbed at really old age, thinking back of your life and wishing you just had a bit more time. Do you really believe that you're going to think "Gee, I sure am glad I followed all those rules, even the ones that pretty much cost me precious seconds of my very own lifetime"?

Every time you stand there at a street crossing and pedantically wait for the light to turn green when you would be just as safe strolling across long before the light does change is some time you won't ever get back. You're very life is slipping through your fingers when you wait. Do you really think it'll be worth it in the end?

Being late is another thing I don't like. That's why I'll always get to where I was going at least a few minutes early. And that means I'll have to wait anyway, so spending the extra minute waiting for a couple of green lights doesn't matter that much.

And at least I can then look back and say "There's many things I did wrong during my life, but crossing the street wasn't one of them." That's something, right?

 

[loc978]

On the off chance that I find myself walking somewhere in a city, I don't pay much attention to lights, just traffic.

But I'm rarely in a city, much less walking in one.

 

[Jack Rascal]

What about other people then? Do you ever see anyone else wait for green in where you live? In here, most people don't care either, but I also see many who do.

There I am, all alone on the side walk. It's pissing down rain, I have no umbrella, the damn pedestrian light mocks me by staring with its cold red eye. If it could, it probably laughed at me too... *sigh*

I wait

 

[Nackl of Gilmed]

If it's definitely clear, sure, but I don't do it near corners that I can't see around. I'm also pretty cautious with my definition of 'clear'. Far as I'm concerned, life's too short to get run over and spend months regaining partial use of your legs just because waiting a minute for the little man to turn green seemed like a waste of time.

 

[William Dickbringer]

depends on if my bus is right there or if I'm late for work then I'll do if not then I'll take my sweet time

 

[game-lover]

I usually wait for green. It's a habit of mine. I know pedestrians have the right of way but I always try to be polite in some fashion and either run when I cross the street or do something or other and wait for cars to pass me up.

 

[DaJoW]

Usually only if it's late at night and I'm sober. I'm much more careful in traffic when I'm drunk.

The difference between being on foot and going by car is also that a car has headlights, most people do not. It's easier for a pedestrian to see and hear an oncoming vehicle than it is for a car to spot a pedestrian in the dark.

 

[orangeban]

It's not as much of an issue blowing a red light when walking than when drive because you generally don't fracture hips and kill when you hit people when walking.

 

[General Vagueness]

aside from my high regard for the law, there could be some idiot too far to see but going fast enough (or accelerating fast enough) that he'd be in that section of street at the same time you are; if it was a life-and-death matter, I'd ignore it if I thought it was safe