Rude drivers, are you EVER pedestrians?

[Anonymous]

Do you ever walk places other than a parking lot? I always wonder if rude/careless drivers realize that they way they treat pedestrians on city streets is dangerous and disconcerting. Are you mostly driving in the suburbs where there are fewer pedestrians? What's going on with you? Someday you're going to hurt someone, if you haven't already. And I know the inevitable responses will say all the pedestrians are careless. That's nonsense. When I'm crossing the street on a walk signal inside the crosswalk and you're making a right and don't even see me, that's on YOU. Don't you ever walk too?

[Anonymous]

OP, thanks for summing up how I feel (almost always pedestrian, rarely driver). So sick of clueless drivers (worst MD, second worst DC, third worst VA IMO) treating my NWDC neighborhood near RCP (max speed limit 25) as their personal speedway and zippy shortcut. Don’t act like you’re doing my family and I a favor by letting us cross the street a block from our residence. I also hate the level of ignorance I regularly see at intersections with clear directions (“stop here on red” and “turn only on green arrow” are treated as mere suggestions). If I drove more, maybe I’d come out to Upper Marlboro or Ashburn and drive like a pompous a$$hole where you walk and play with your kids.

[Anonymous]

Stop crossing the street when the hand is flashing! Wait on the sidewalk not the road.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Stop crossing the street when the hand is flashing! Wait on the sidewalk not the road.

That gives you license to run someone over?

[Anonymous]

A lot of pedestrians are on their phones.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A lot of pedestrians are on their phones.

So are a lot of drivers, even though that's against the law in DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Stop crossing the street when the hand is flashing! Wait on the sidewalk not the road.

Sure. I'll do that. But how about you stop when you see a Pedestrian Crossing sign and a crosswalk on a busy road. Deal?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Stop crossing the street when the hand is flashing! Wait on the sidewalk not the road.

I hope that you are not one of the people who says that the law doesn't require drivers to stop unless the pedestrian is IN the crosswalk - i.e., in the road.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of pedestrians are on their phones.

So are a lot of drivers, even though that's against the law in DC.

The law needs to be better enforced.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Stop crossing the street when the hand is flashing! Wait on the sidewalk not the road.

I got yelled at by a truck driver because I was still in the crosswalk when the hand started flashing-I had started walking when the hand was solid. He apparently thought that the flashing hand meant I was no longer allowed to be in the crosswalk and it was appropriate to start driving up on me. I don't even know how you address that level of ignorance-and this is a person who drives for a living.

[Anonymous]

In my city there are a lot of broken walk lights, and some drivers believe that means that peds never have the right of way-so frustrating. I try to be aware of what conditions drivers are facing, so I'm not going to jump out in front of them, if I a driver has someone going really fast on their tail, I'll wait, but too many driver just appear completely unaware of pedestrians.

[Anonymous]

Yes. Every day.

And I'm good at it, because I'm the kind of pedestrian that I want to see as a driver.

I pay attention to my surroundings. I keep my head up, not buried in my phone. I don't act entitled. I know I have to share the street when crossing. I only cross at crosswalks or at lights, even if that means going out of my way. I wait for my turn and cross with traffic. I enter the crosswalk as soon as the walk light comes on, and I cross as quickly as I possibly can. If the flashing don't walk light is on, I won't go, since I know I'll likely be interfering with drivers who've been waiting patiently to make a turn. In short, I'm courteous.


That's what I do as a pedestrian to make things go smoothly for everyone. And if there were more people like me, there'd be far fewer problems.

[Anonymous]

The worse are the people turning left when they have a green light (to go STRAIGHT, not to turn). The gun it left only looking at traffic, failing to realize your green light does not mean green to turn, and the pedestrian has the right.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes. Every day.

And I'm good at it, because I'm the kind of pedestrian that I want to see as a driver.

I pay attention to my surroundings. I keep my head up, not buried in my phone. I don't act entitled. I know I have to share the street when crossing. I only cross at crosswalks or at lights, even if that means going out of my way. I wait for my turn and cross with traffic. I enter the crosswalk as soon as the walk light comes on, and I cross as quickly as I possibly can. If the flashing don't walk light is on, I won't go, since I know I'll likely be interfering with drivers who've been waiting patiently to make a turn. In short, I'm courteous.


That's what I do as a pedestrian to make things go smoothly for everyone. And if there were more people like me, there'd be far fewer problems.

I do all that. I'm a careful pedestrian and still I've had close calls with careless drivers. Once I was crossing at Connecticut and Q and had the walk sign and no drivers turning left would even let me into the crosswalk. When I finally did step in (still on the walk), I got cursed out by the next car who stopped about a foot from me. I just pointed to walk signal. I'm tired of they tyranny of cars. Drivers are so entitled that it's utterly bizarre.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes. Every day.

And I'm good at it, because I'm the kind of pedestrian that I want to see as a driver.

I pay attention to my surroundings. I keep my head up, not buried in my phone. I don't act entitled. I know I have to share the street when crossing. I only cross at crosswalks or at lights, even if that means going out of my way. I wait for my turn and cross with traffic. I enter the crosswalk as soon as the walk light comes on, and I cross as quickly as I possibly can. If the flashing don't walk light is on, I won't go, since I know I'll likely be interfering with drivers who've been waiting patiently to make a turn. In short, I'm courteous.


That's what I do as a pedestrian to make things go smoothly for everyone. And if there were more people like me, there'd be far fewer problems.

If there were more people like you, the engineers would be even more comfortable engineering the roads for drivers, with pedestrians as an afterthought, at best, and at worst as driver-interfering road clutter. Pedestrians and drivers have equal rights to the road. (And I'm saying this as a frequent pedestrian and a frequent driver.)

At most locations, it is legal to cross midblock (and it's often safer). Every intersection is a crosswalk, whether or not there's paint on the pavement. The engineers time the signals for drivers, not for pedestrians, so if you're trying to go across a street that has the favored direction for the signal, you will get the legal minimum time to cross. And even if you cross as fast as you possibly can, there are plenty of people who can't cross as fast as you.