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one word: cell phone

Look both ways, we used to teach that to kindergartners.

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"Entitled" because you'd rather not be mowed down?

I'm kind of amazed that this wasn't already the law here. In any case, it's very much needed. Of everywhere I've lived in the US, NJ has the worst overall driving habits, at least in terms of respect for pedestrians. Maybe next we can get NJ drivers to use their turn signals all the time...


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What happened to looking both ways? This law seems to empower he entitled and those who evolution keeps forgetting to take care of.

The new law is for motorist and pedestrians alike...

"Motorists who violate the law face a $200 fine, plus court costs, and 2 points on their license. They can also be subject to 15 days of community service and insurance surcharges.

Pedestrians may also be cited under state law for failing to use due care when crossing. The law requires them to obey pedestrian signals and use crosswalks at signalized intersections as well as yield the right of way to traffic if they are not crossing within a crosswalk or at an intersection. Failure to comply with the law carries a $54 fine, plus court costs."

http://www.newjerseynewsroom.com/stat ... pedestrians-in-crosswalks

So does this mean pedestrians can walk against red lights and cross whenever they want to? Get into the crosswalk when I have the green arrow and they have a Don't Walk sign and we are all supposed to stop and hold up traffic because they are too entitled to wait for a walk signal?

Good luck with that.

Excellent law for our JC downtown district as well as the rest of NJ, now if we can only find a responsible government department to enforce it...

Yielding is No Longer Enough at NJ Crosswalks

By LARRY HIGGS
APP
March 31, 2010

It's no April Fool's joke. Drivers will have to come to a full stop for pedestrians in crosswalks under a new law that takes effect Thursday, April 1.

That means no creeping, no rolling stops and no blasting through the crosswalk after a pedestrian takes two steps away from the car.

Safety officials said the law change is because of increasing pedestrian fatality rates in the state and the desire to create a "safe zone" in crosswalks to discourage jaywalking.

The old law required drivers to yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk, but safety advocates said many drivers didn't obey the law because of confusion over what "yield" means.

" 'Yield' doesn't mean stop, and that's the problem. If you ask people what 'yield' means, you'll get six different definitions ? a rolling stop, slow down and creep through the intersection," said Pam Fischer, state Division of Highway Traffic Safety director. "The new law says it's your responsibility to stop, period."

Fines rise from $100 to $200 for drivers who don't stop. It was signed into law by then Gov. Jon S. Corzine in January.

"Yielding is a much more ambiguous directive than stop," said Zoe Baldwin, Tri-State Transportation Campaign New Jersey coordinator. The campaign has tracked pedestrian fatality increases over the years. "We need to make the community safe for walking."

The goal is to prevent fatal pedestrian accidents, which spiked last year to 157 from declines in 2008 when there were 138 fatalities and 2007 when 138 walkers lost their lives, Fischer said.

So far there have been 28 pedestrian fatalities in 2010, compared with 48 for the same period in 2009, she said.

"People understand 'stop.' You come to a halt," said Ranjit Walia, senior research specialist at Rutgers University's Voorhees Transportation Institute. "The major advantage (for drivers and pedestrians) is you create clear-cut rules."

Data from pedestrian decoy enforcement programs done by police showed that compliance with the "yield" law was low, Walia said.

"We are averaging 150 pedestrian fatalities a year, and there are two to three serious injuries for every fatality, and another 50 hit for everyone seriously injured," he said. "Those are bad numbers."

Pedestrians also have to follow the rules.

"They can't just step out, they have to look at the signs and the signals and at traffic," Fischer said. "If you see a car coming, you shouldn't step out."

The law also requires pedestrians to yield if they are crossing at a place other than at a crosswalk, Fischer said.

New Jersey's law is modeled after similar measures in Oregon and Washington, which along with Hawaii and Georgia require drivers to stop for pedestrians, Walia said.

The law also gives pedestrians some breathing room by requiring drivers to wait until walkers are one lane away before proceeding.

"It puts drivers on notice, if you're driving through downtown Red Bank, you need to pay attention to pedestrians walking," Baldwin said.

A potentially controversial part of the law says that if a driver hits a pedestrian in a crosswalk, the presumption of fault lies with the driver for not taking "due care" for the safety of the pedestrian.