Pedestrians — where they belong and when to yield
| What the rule says | Where it goes wrong | |
|---|---|---|
| Zebra crossing | You must give way to those crossing AND to those clearly about to cross. Waiting until someone steps onto the carriageway is therefore already too late. | Skipping “clearly about to”. Someone standing at the kerb looking your way is covered; making them wait is an offence, not a question of courtesy. |
| Blind and less mobile people | Blind people with a white stick with red rings AND generally ALL people who move with difficulty must be let go first. This duty is not tied to a crossing. | Thinking it is only about blind people. “Generally all people who move with difficulty” is deliberately broad: a walker, crutches, an older person walking slowly. |
| When there is a pedestrian light | With a red pedestrian light (or the flashing amber of art. 74(2)) the duty in paragraph 2 does NOT apply. The light then decides who goes. | Concluding that you may simply drive on. Someone already crossing must “walk on as quickly as possible” (art. 74(1)(c)) — hitting them is still your responsibility. |
| Where the pedestrian belongs | Pavement or footpath; if those and a cycle path are absent, then the verge or the OUTERMOST edge of the carriageway. | Treating a pedestrian on the carriageway as an offender by default. Outside built-up areas without a pavement they are lawfully there — and you must expect them. |
| Passengers at a tram or bus | Whoever wants to pass a stationary tram or bus on the boarding side must GIVE the boarding and alighting passengers the OPPORTUNITY to do so. | Turning it into an absolute ban on passing. Passing is allowed; what is not allowed is denying passengers the opportunity. At walking pace and with room is the intent. |
| Five metres before the crossing | Standing is forbidden on a crossing and within five metres of it. | Thinking the five metres exist to keep traffic flowing. They exist for VISIBILITY: a car just before the crossing hides the child about to step out. |
| Inside a home zone | Pedestrians may use roads inside a home zone across their FULL WIDTH. No crossing is needed there — the whole road is theirs. | Waiting for a crossing that does not exist. In a home zone people cross anywhere; you adapt, not they. |
The law itself
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