How about this letter to the Wirral Globe?
HOW do some people get their driving licence?
I live near Birkenhead town centre, and the amount of times I am about to cross at a pelican crossing when the traffic lights go to flashing amber and drivers think they have the right to drive straight at you.
And try waiting at a zebra crossing – you could wait there all day and no-one would have the courtesy to stop for you.
What do others think?
Maybe he should read the Highway Code – and be a little clearer on what he is actually doing (I don’t see how you can be “about to cross” and have people driving “straight at you” unless they’re going on the pavement!).
From the driver’s point of view, the HC says:
196
Signal-controlled crossings
Pelican crossings. These are signal-controlled crossings where flashing amber follows the red ‘Stop’ light. You MUST stop when the red light shows. When the amber light is flashing, you MUST give way to any pedestrians on the crossing. If the amber light is flashing and there are no pedestrians on the crossing, you may proceed with caution.
[Laws ZPPPCRGD regs 23 & 26 & RTRA sect 25(5)]
Note the parts I’ve underlined. Now look at what the HC says from the pedestrian’s point of view:
22
Pelican crossings. These are signal-controlled crossings operated by pedestrians. Push the control button to activate the traffic signals. When the red figure shows, do not cross. When a steady green figure shows, check the traffic has stopped then cross with care. When the green figure begins to flash you should not start to cross. If you have already started you should have time to finish crossing safely .
Again, note the part I’ve underlined.
The flashing green man (for the pedestrian) comes on slightly before the flashing amber (for the road user). In an ideal world, everyone would know the rules and follow them rigidly.
Since we don’t live in a perfect world, a motorist who starts to move when the flashing amber comes on frequently has to deal with pedestrians who think that the mere presence of a crossing means they can cross whenever they feel like it.
Perhaps the guy who wrote this letter illustrates clearly why there are so many pedestrians around who behave like that?