Only the ability to drive a car or vehicle won’t make you a good driver. Instead, knowing all the traffic rules properly, including road safety signs, would make you a reliable driver. And without knowing the signs correctly, you could face several consequences, from breaking traffic rules to severe accidents.
Among many others, the pedestrian crossing sign is one. It ensures pedestrians’ safety while crossing the road or walking sideways.
Let’s find detail on pedestrian crossing signs in Canada.
What Is a Pedestrian Crossing Sign?
When you are driving in areas with pedestrian crosswalks, or pedestrians cross the street frequently, you will see a pedestrian crossing sign beside the road. It provides an advance signal about road activity.
This sign alerts the drivers about the people using the road so that the drivers reduce their speed and stop ahead of time, and yield to pedestrians crossing the street.
How Does a Pedestrian Walking Sign Look Like?
So, what does the sign look like? Well, the Pedestrian Crossing sign comes with a combination of yellow and black designs. It has the following characteristics.
- The sign comes in a diamond shape.
- It contains black lettering on a yellow background.
This unique shape and design will let you understand the signal from a very far away when you become an experienced driver.
The Meaning Behind The Sign
A Pedestrian Crossing sign indicates a few things like –
- The areas contain high pedestrian activity.
- The driver should be in their highest alerting situation. They should be able to slow down or stop the car in a short time.
Pedestrian Crossing Sign Purpose
Using The pedestrian crossing signs, you can remind drivers and pedestrians both to keep careful. Crosswalk signs show lanes and areas where people can safely cross the street while staying away from risky areas. Pedestrian crossing signs also alert drivers to when they should slow down or stop for pedestrians.
For people who are old, disabled, or even young children, crosswalk signs are very useful. When they are playing, children might not always pay attention to the traffic signals. In fact, when they are playing, they usually run into the streets or crosswalks. The old or disabled pedestrians sometimes find it difficult to react fast when they need to move out of the way.
What Should You Do If You See a Pedestrian Crossing Sign?
What is the sign of pedestrian crossing ahead? Now you have the answer! You can find out these signs quite often while driving. And when you see one, remember the below things.
- Keep close attention to marked and unmarked crosswalks.
- Yield to pedestrians who are crossing the road.
- Wait until they pass the road entirely and then start driving.
- Don’t stop in the middle of the crosswalk.
- Stop before the crosswalk line
- Keep a safe distance from the pedestrians crossing the street.
Read Also: Pedestrian Crossing Rules
Places That Contains Pedestrian Crossing Signs
These signs are common in some places. The location includes:
- Ahead of marked crosswalks and unmarked crosswalks
- Intersections
- Near schools
- Near parks
- Suburban roads
- Near shopping centers
These are the familiar places where you see these signs. But as you will get more experience behind the wheel, you can easily anticipate when a walker can come in front of your vehicle. You can be alert for the potential hazard and become aware of them before they become a problem.
Driver Safety Tips
While it’s about driving in a highly congested area, you need to look out for some factors to avoid accidents.
- While driving a car, you should always pay attention to the road.
- Don’t drive when you are not in the right state of mind.
- Don’t use your phone and divert your focus while driving.
- Be ready to yield to walkers at the intersections.
- If a car in front of you or the lane next to you is stopped, don’t try to overtake them as there is a high chance that they may be yielding to a pedestrian.
- Always keep a safe distance from a crosswalk. People may come outside of the line. So, prepare yourself for that type of incident.
Pedestrian Safety Tips
Walker pays the price when drivers can’t control their car in time. Especially, pedestrians have to be extra careful in the fall and winter due to the rough weather.
Therefore, you should follow the below tips to be careful as a pedestrian.
- Be careful at every intersection. Walk straight on the road and don’t do jay-walk.
- Look out for the drivers turning left or right while walking on the crosswalk.
- Always use crosswalks, and don’t forget to follow the traffic signals & pedestrian signs.
- Don’t always assume that the driver has seen you and pop up in front of the car out of nowhere. Make eye contact with the driver before taking your step.
- Try your best not to cross the road near trees and large bushes or between a parked car as there is a high chance that the drivers might not see you.
- Don’t look at your phone while crossing a road.
- Remove your headphone and listen to every sound on the road.
- While walking at night or in gloomy weather, make sure your cloth is reflective enough, and the driver can spot you easily.
The Law of Pedestrian Obligations and Prohibitions
According to the Highway Safety Code, pedestrians must follow some rules.
- The walker should always use the sidewalk beside the roadway. If there is no sidewalk, they can walk along the side of the road on the opposite side of the car. However, they are also allowed to walk with the flow of traffic if that option seems safer than the previous one.
- Pedestrians should check traffic before crossing at intersections and pedestrian crosswalks. They should look left at first, then check the right side. Then again, check the left side as well as behind themselves and then cross the road.
- They must obey the traffic lights at the intersections.
- Walker should not cross an intersection diagonally.
- Pedestrians are not allowed to do hitchhiking on the roadways as well as the areas where passing is illegal.
- They should not walk on highways.
Penalties for Not Obeying the Rules
You see, there are rules to maintain as a pedestrian while crossing the road. However, sometimes you can find yourself in a place with no intersection or pedestrian crosswalk nearby.
So what should you do in that case? Well, you have to yield the right of way to cars and cyclists before crossing the road.
If you don’t obey these rules, you have to face penalties as per the rules of the Highway Safety Code. The fines range from $15 to $30.
The Bottom Line
Hopefully, now you don’t have confusion about what is a pedestrian crossing sign. Remember, pedestrians do have the priority to cross a road, and the driver should give way to them.
As a pedestrian or a driver, you should always maintain the traffic rules. And create a safer environment for everyone!
So, drive carefully and stay safe!
