What do you do when a car pulls up to crosswalk at the same time your running through it?

Are you idiots kidding? ALWAYS run behind the car, wait, or turn around. Drivers are less attentive now than they have ever been and with the increased traffic most drivers are looking to avoid other vehicles and thinking little about a runner near them.

I stop abruptly, sigh and act inconvenienced by the fact a car is actually using the street. Don't they realized, streets are made for skinny road runners?

If you want to know the letter of the law regarding who has the right of way and under what conditions, here's a link to "Pedestrian Crossing: 50 State Summary" put out by the National Conference of State Legislatures:

http://www.ncsl.org/research/transportation/pedestrian-crossing-50-state-summary.aspx

An interesting read.

Make eye contact with the driver

I lived across the street from one of my high school athletes. I was coaching at his school though I was teaching at another high school within the city. It was a Sunday morning and I went across the street and asked if this young man wanted to go out and run with me. His mother and father were nervous about him running on the roads, but I assured them that we lived in a rural area and it was safe. So we headed out on our run and this really quiet freshman and I came to a four way intersection. We had the light and we proceeded to go and all of a sudden a woman in a large SUV decided to take a right on red without stopping. I flew off the the front off of the car. The woman rolled down her window and I thought she was going to apologize or ask me if I was ok. Of course not, she started yelling at me because she spilt her coffee. I reacted with the worst language I have ever directed at someone. The woman took off and the next three miles the young man I was running with could not stop laughing. The whole way back I was begging him not to tell anyone including his parents. The next day I walked into school and I could not believe how many students and faculty members new of my expletive language. When I showed up for practice all of his teammates as everyone else knew of my rant. I now laugh at thehole incident and the parents now laugh. The young man became a state champion and had a successful high school and. collegiate career.

I'm still amazed at what I said, but when your life flashes in front of you.

Flip the car.

the sidewalk runner wrote:

Assuming your running at night so eye contact with the driver is an issue. Do you run behind the car all the time (even if they appear to be waiting for you to cross in front of them)? I have safety lights so it's going to be hard to miss me but you never what's going on the other side of the wheel. I usually run behind but it's a pain do that zig zag move.

You shouldn't be running though it. That's the way to get killed.

Its called a cross WALK for a reason.

Drivers approach x-walks expecting walkers, and adjust their approach accordingly.

At night.......safety always first.......go behind car.

Daytlme.......witnesses.....go in front.........no witnesses go behind.

You sound narcissistic. You expect every driver to always be looking out for amazing extra-special runners like you. Just run behind them and stop being a toxic narcissistic blight.

seattle prattle wrote:

If you want to know the letter of the law regarding who has the right of way and under what conditions, here's a link to "Pedestrian Crossing: 50 State Summary" put out by the National Conference of State Legislatures:

http://www.ncsl.org/research/transportation/pedestrian-crossing-50-state-summary.aspx

An interesting read.

Unfortunately, by trying to make pedestrians safer, they are teaching people that pedestrians ALWAYS have the right away over cars. Everywhere I go now, big signs have been put up in every town at crosswalks that cars MUST STOP if pedestrians are in the crosswalk. The younger generation has assumed that this means they don't even have to look before they cross. I have seen this trend get worse the last few years. With pedestrians not even looking before crossing in front of vehicles and more people than ever driving distracted, it is no wonder pedestrian deaths have been rising.

And that is exactly why the Washington State rules include this warning to pedestrians: " Pedestrians may not suddenly leave the curb and enter a crosswalk into the path of a moving vehicle that is so close the vehicle is unable to stop."

Normal Driver wrote:

You sound narcissistic. You expect every driver to always be looking out for amazing extra-special runners like you. Just run behind them and stop being a toxic narcissistic blight.

All pedestrians have a right to cross in crosswalk. Cars have the OBLIGATION to stop and yield the right of way.

That includes a driver like you ---- so do the right thing and don't get sued.

Wear bright neon running shirts, go behind cars rather than in front of them, be hyper-vigilant about where they are and are coming from, try to run when visibility is good, and most of all, seek running routes that bring you into minimal conflict with cars, because it is no joke when a car hits a runner. There are already a lot of runners hit by cars for us to mourn and we don't want to add to that total.

Growing up in Sudbury, MA I had a 3-mile route for fast runs from my parent's house by the Wayside Inn, a local "colonial" landmark.

I'd run 5 minute pace on a good day. One such day I was rolling towards an intersection - a car was coming up to the intersection simultaneously and I met eyes with the driver. He gave me an F.U. look and continued at speed.

We hit the intersection together and I bounded up over the hood of his car touching it once with my foot and continued on my way.

I did not look back, and the M.F. did not come after me. It felt quite good to my 18-year old self...

It's True wrote:

GoatZenHeimer wrote:

I run around the back of the vehicle.

This. All the bravado and being "right" isn't worth getting struck by a car. The car will win.

Thank you. Also, it saves time.

the sidewalk runner wrote:

Assuming your running at night so eye contact with the driver is an issue. Do you run behind the car all the time (even if they appear to be waiting for you to cross in front of them)? I have safety lights so it's going to be hard to miss me but you never what's going on the other side of the wheel. I usually run behind but it's a pain do that zig zag move.

I always run behind it.

I run with a frozen water bottle that thaws as I run, so have cold water after a few miles. A mile into my run, water bottle still frozen, a dude in a brand new BMW laughed and reved up his car and lurched forward so he could block my path in the cross walk and make a right hand turn on red. I jumped back and hurled my frozen bottle at his car leaving a huge dent on his quarter panel.

I always remind myself that the most common headstone inscription is, “Here lies so-and-so who had the right off way.” Then I go behind the car.

Right of way must be yielded to you first. Regardless of right or wrong the 2 ton vehicle always wins.