Stop signs at crosswalks. Do you yield to cars?

[StopMeansStop]

Speeding and tailgating is certainly boneheaded. But so is coming to a sudden stop on a 2 lane highway for people WAITING to cross. That is not the law.

[Jsnyd]

@StopMeansStop 6097 wrote:

Speeding and tailgating is certainly boneheaded. But so is coming to a sudden stop on a 2 lane highway for people WAITING to cross. That is not the law.

Too bad I cant “thumbs up” this.

[CCrew]

@StopMeansStop 6097 wrote:

coming to a sudden stop on a 2 lane highway for people WAITING to cross. That is not the law.

I consider it “being considerate”. A trait that’s lost on a lot of people. Necessary? No. illegal? Arguable. Showing some consideration for a fellow human being regardless of how misguided? Definitely!

If it were my child on a bike trying to cross the street I’d personally appreciate someone putting two tons of steel in the way of the next person that comes along thinking that trying to be considerate is “boneheaded”

[PotomacCyclist]

In my experience, most drivers will not consider slowing down at those GW Parkway crossings, but some do. The problem for runners and cyclists is trying to figure out if a car is going straight, or turning onto the ramp, (at the Washington Blvd crossing, just to the south of Memorial Bridge) as I pointed out in the previous post. This is an issue because there is rarely a break in the traffic. During busier times of the day, the cars head up the parkway almost non-stop. So the cyclist/runner has to wait quite a long time before a break in the high-speed traffic, or they have to guess at whether that next car is going straight or turning. One of those trail crossings is just too close to the ramp turnoff.

I’m surprised that there aren’t more accidents at those crossings.

There are plans to pave the dirt trail along Rte. 110, up to Memorial Drive near the Arlington Cemetery Metro stop. That would be an alternate path for those who wish to avoid the dangerous crossings. But even that trail will involve a grade crossing. I don’t know if the project is funded or not, or what the timetable is.

[ronwalf]

@StopMeansStop 6077 wrote:

As you can tell there is a difference of opinion about this. My advice on the GW is to not stop for people waiting to cross, and be prepared for someone else to pull a bonehead move and slam on their brakes.

You are presenting a false dichotomy: If you see a pedestrian at a crosswalk, waiting to cross, you should come to a controlled stop. Fortunately for you, since no one seems to acknowledge this law, Virginia has seen fit to provide penalties only when there are explicit reminders (46.2-924C).

Also, considering how many deer there are around here, you should always be prepared for the person in front of you to stop.

[StopMeansStop]

@CCrew 6106 wrote:

I consider it “being considerate”. A trait that’s lost on a lot of people. Necessary? No. illegal? Arguable. Showing some consideration for a fellow human being regardless of how misguided? Definitely!

If it were my child on a bike trying to cross the street I’d personally appreciate someone putting two tons of steel in the way of the next person that comes along thinking that trying to be considerate is “boneheaded”

Please note that my comments were aimed at the GW situation. While I appreciate the courtesy that drivers show in this situation, it is completely misguided. Some innocent woman died a gruesome death. I’d love for those crossings to be fixed somehow. Short of installing traffic lights I don’t see a solution.

[StopMeansStop]

@ronwalf 6109 wrote:

You are presenting a false dichotomy: If you see a pedestrian at a crosswalk, waiting to cross, you should come to a controlled stop. Fortunately for you, since no one seems to acknowledge this law, Virginia has seen fit to provide penalties only when there are explicit reminders (46.2-924C).

Also, considering how many deer there are around here, you should always be prepared for the person in front of you to stop.

It’s not a fallacy, I addressed section C already.

http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?964-Stop-signs-at-crosswalks-Do-you-yield-to-cars&p=6024#post6024

[ronwalf]

@StopMeansStop 6112 wrote:

It’s not a fallacy, I addressed section C already.

Except that signs for one user don’t change the duty of another.

[StopMeansStop]

True, but a driver is not required to stop for waiting pedestrians unless signage to that effect is in place, as the code you cited clearly states. I’m not saying none exists, but I’ve never seen any signs to that effect in VA.

[ronwalf]

This is true, as long as you take ‘require’ to mean ‘under penalty of law.’

[Dirt]

@ronwalf 6125 wrote:

This is true, as long as you take ‘require’ to mean ‘under penalty of law.’

I’d love to see what some real enforcement for bikes and cars would do for safety.

[RESTONTODC]

@Dirt 6127 wrote:

I’d love to see what some real enforcement for bikes and cars would do for safety.

Hey, don’t forget to enforce jogger, especially the one with headset. May be dogs, cats, and deers as well

The recent GW accident was involved jogger, not cyclist. As well as my recent witness accident on WOD, the jogger jumped on the road.

[uswebpro]

big crash today
VIDEO I JUST TOOK (7/21/2001 AT 9:00 AM)
[video]http://www.facebook.com/v/909708145845[/video]

ATTN: DC BIKERS
Do not use the pedestrian crossing on the GW (George Washington) Memorial Parkway. It’s a FALSE sense of safety. Today with 2 cars completely stopped a pickup truck barreled through both of them. Thus pushing both (stopped) cars completely though the pedestrian crossing. Luckily the girl that was about to cross waited. I was watching this as it happened. Normally I just go through as the 1st car begins to stop.

[Dirt]

@RESTONTODC 6131 wrote:

Hey, don’t forget to enforce jogger, especially the one with headset. May be dogs, cats, and deers as well

The recent GW accident was involved jogger, not cyclist. As well as my recent witness accident on WOD, the jogger jumped on the road.

Good point. It was an oversight on my part. Enforcement should be done on all. Will it happen? No. It would require a lot of manpower increase and effort and might not produce much in the way of results. It’ll have to remain part of my personal “I have a dream” dream sequence.

[americancyclo]

@uswebpro 6132 wrote:

big crash today
VIDEO I JUST TOOK (7/21/2001 AT 9:00 AM)
[video]http://www.facebook.com/v/909708145845[/video]

That is scary as hell. A lot of us have been through there all too often.

[Author]

Posts