Crosswalks
Question
Carole asked: At a 4 way intersection, I have the permitted light to cross, yet the cars on my left have a green light and start to take a right onto the road I’m trying to cross. Today, dozens of cars took the right, so that the crossing light counted down to zero and I was unable to cross. Who in fact has the right-of-way?
Answer
Bicyclists on a sidewalk or crosswalk have the rights a duties of pedestrians.
s. 316.2065 – Bicycle Regulations
(9) A person propelling a vehicle by human power upon and along a sidewalk, or across a roadway upon and along a crosswalk, has all the rights and duties applicable to a pedestrian under the same circumstances.
Drivers must yield to a pedestrian or a bicyclist who is legally in a crosswalk. Please see this post:
http://flbikelaw.org/2016/03/drivers-must-yield-to-pedestrians/
In the name of safety there has been a push to stop mid-block crossings, police are ticketing. I was walking with a 70 year old woman who does not own a car. When we approached an intersection she turned and walked away. I asked where are you going she replied to cross the street. I said the crosswalk is just there. She replied it is to dangerous to cross at the lighted crosswalk. She said the right turn on red cars do not stop and the cars turning across 3 lanes of oncoming traffic into the crosswalk will hit you. She said I go to mid-block wait for the traffic to stop in one direction walk to the median wait for traffic to stop in the other direction then cross, it is much safer and she is 100% correct. To answer the above question I get off my bike and slowly push it into the crosswalk until the right turn cars stop then I proceed.
This problem tends to arise when (1) heavy right-turn demand occurs, (2) no triangular traffic island is present to separate right-turn traffic from through traffic and allow the crosswalk user who wants to cross the crossroad to cross the path of RT traffic in a separate stage (e.g., when RT lane traffic is stopped or not present).
If the opposite pedestrian signal displays the walking person symbol, the crosswalk user has the right to proceed but, in practice, if the crosswalk user cannot get into the crosswalk before the lead right-turning driver begins to turn into it, following drivers often scoot forward and form a “train”, so that the whole queue turns before the crosswalk user can proceed.
I rarely ride on the sidewalk, but as a pedestrian in this situation I often find I can cross in time only by stepping out into the roadway assertively (even a little to the left of the crosswalk, so that I am closer and more visible to turning drivers), then slowly moving forward until drivers stop.