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Crosswalk Crossness
updated: Mar 13, 2012, 1:38 PM

By Daryl Metzger

The recent police crosswalk stings don't seem to have had much of an effect, at least not at the Alan Road crosswalk on Cliff Drive.

Walking to Hendry's Beach today, I carefully looked both ways, waited until traffic cleared, and then stepped into that crosswalk from the Alan Road side. I was three steps out when I saw a car approaching at high speed from the direction of Las Positas. The car was not slowing at all, so I retreated back to the curb. The driver blew right by as if I wasn't there.

The same thing happened later, when I was crossing back over from the beach to Alan Road. Once again, I waited for a clear, safe opening in traffic before stepping out into the crosswalk, and I made it obvious that I intended to cross and was not just dawdling by the roadside. Again, an oncoming driver who had more than enough time to stop ignored my presence.

The Alan Road crosswalk is a busy place, especially during the summer and on unseasonably warm days. It would be an ideal place for a police crosswalk sting, but I have never seen one happen here. If they showed up unannounced on a nice day, I suspect the cops could make a nice bit of revenue for the city and make this crossing a little safer for a while.

Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)

COMMENT 263952	2012-03-13 01:46 PM
Every crosswalk should be flanked by two piles of bricks. When you cross, you pick up a brick, and if someone doesn't stop... throw it at them. Then when (or if...) you cross, you leave it on the other side. Something's got to stop them.
COMMENT 263962	2012-03-13 02:16 PM
@954 - It's NOT just women on cell phones. What, you don't think MEN use cell phones while driving???? And, if you are gonna throw something, I think a life-like toy baby would be much more effective than throwing a brick.
COMMENT 263964	2012-03-13 02:20 PM
@962 Just reporting my experiences. I've never been almost plowed over by a cell phone blabbering male, just sayin.'
COMMENT 263967	2012-03-13 02:35 PM
I was one of the people that got ticketed in the recent sting. For the record, I have a near-spotless driving record (one moving violation in 40 years.) In other words, a very cautious and careful driver. I'd like feedback on this situation as I'm contesting the ticket. I was going west on Coast Village Road at 25 MPH. At the Butterfly Lane intersection, just before my car entered the crosswalk, a guy on the other side (eastbound side) steps off the curb into the sidewalk. The motorcycle cop pulled me over immediately. I explained that I would have had to slam on my brakes to avoid moving through the intersection and that I didn't even see the guy til I was into the crosswalk. I found out later it was a set up and the "ped" was a plant. I'm outraged and feel this was grossly unfair. I'm a super-careful driver and good citizen (volunteer in the community.) I got nailed on a technicality. I'd love to hear your comments, negative or positive. Thoughts on my fighting this too, please.
COMMENT 263970	2012-03-13 02:39 PM
It's a money grab, pure and simple. The public employees' pensions are only 49% funded in this city. They want your money and they want it NOW!
COMMENT 263971	2012-03-13 02:48 PM
263967 - Sorry...if you were heading westbound on CVR approaching Butterfly Ln then you have one of the best views of a pedestrian on the opposite side of the street of any intersection in Santa Barbara. If you didn't see the ped until you were almost in the crosswalk then you weren't lookin. I've seen these stings in action. The ped doesn't run up and jump into the intersection. They stand there for quite some time then start to cross as a car approaches. Yer guilty. Go ahead and fight it. You might get lucky and the officer might not show. But that's the only way you are getting out of paying the ticket.
COMMENT 263972	2012-03-13 02:53 PM
You may not have much of an argument and you past record is irrelevant, but you can read the complete CA Vehicle Code referenced on your citation. Is there any ambiguity? Does it state the pedestrian must be in the cross walk or something along the lines of appearing to intend to cross from the curb? If the former then your only argument is you could not have safely stopped your vehicle before entering the crosswalk. But if it is the officer's opinion that you could have safely stopped then you're likely out of luck, especially at only 25 mph.
COMMENT 263974P	2012-03-13 03:05 PM
I contested a ticket once and learned something from Judge Brian Hill. He heard a case and asked both the CHP officer and the guy for their explanation. The officer had some thoughts but I wondered how he could have remembered much from one ticket, three months prior. They guy had his turn and couldn't say much either. That's when the Judge said, "In cases like this I usually go with the officer unless the accused protested at the time." If you were nice and protested, and have a clean record I think you might win. Also, as said above, if the officer doesn't show up, you walk. Which is what happened in my case.
COMMENT 263978	2012-03-13 03:20 PM
If you can't stop in time for a pedestrian at a crosswalk, you are going faster than 25 mph. (And that's probably exactly what the judge will tell you.) And since 25 mph is the speed limit around schools, and schools all have crosswalks around them, you probably should start slowing down and paying better attention before that pedestrian you don't notice stepping into the crosswalk is a child.
COMMENT 263981	2012-03-13 03:35 PM
There was a time, when the police went out and encouraged or made crime it was called entrapment and people were indignant. Now it seems the police have time to set up entrapment. And the populace just shrugs.
COMMENT 263982	2012-03-13 03:38 PM
@JULIAN You need to read up on what entrapment in terms of the law actually means. Entrapment is clearly not the case here.
COMMENT 263987	2012-03-13 03:49 PM
I was going 25mph (it's written on the ticket) and just before I entered the intersection (about 2 feet or so from the line) the pedestrian/plant stepped into the crosswalk on the other side of the intersection. It sure felt and looked like entrapment to me, even though legally/technically I was wrong. BTW thanks for all your comments - much appreciated. One other question: I paid the bail amount ($284) and have a court date at the end of May. No shows get a possible arrest warrant... but how easy is it to cancel the hearing in advance? I'm seeing the difficulty in contesting this.
COMMENT 263989	2012-03-13 03:56 PM
If someone is waiting at a curb, how do we know if they are intending to cross or not? If they step off the curb as I'm approaching the intersection, then I know they intend to cross and I stop. But if they are standing there, maybe they are counting sheep or blabbing on a cell phone or who knows what. Plus what does the law say about multiple traffic lanes? If a pedestrian steps off the west bound curb on Carrillo and I'm going eastbound, do I have to slam on my brakes and wait for the pedestrian to cross all 4 lanes? Is there any gray area here? I don't care what the legal definition of entrapment is, if the police are paying a guy to pretend that he wants to cross the street, and busting drivers as a result, I consider that a scam and I will remember it when the police force says they need more $ and staff. And my experience has been that drivers have been more cautious about waiting for pedestrians at intersections since the sting operation.
COMMENT 263999P	2012-03-13 04:22 PM
They've been actively ticketing in my neighborhood all week. I saw a guy get pulled over that drove past a woman with one wheel of her bike sitting in the crosswalk, the back wheel on the sidewalk. The woman with the bike was standing flatfooted, talking on her phone and straddling her bike. She seemed completely unprepared to cross. The ticket may have been for speeding, as the car looked to be going faster than the speed limit (but the same speed as everyone else). But, they are routinely sitting along the side streets, collecting some good money for a variety of infractions. Be careful out there.
COMMENT 264000	2012-03-13 04:30 PM
@99P Doubtful that had anything to do with the crosswalk as the woman on the bike should have received a ticket for riding her bike on the sidewalk.
COMMENT 264001	2012-03-13 04:31 PM
263989 - From Noel Rivas of the SBPD... "The Vehicle Code states a vehicle must yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk at all times, however most of the local courts have used the following 'rule of thumb:' If a pedestrian has to stop and/or break stride to avoid being struck by a vehicle, then the violator will usually be found GUILTY of the violation. If the pedestrian steps off the curb and the vehicle is 'SIGNIFICANTLY' [far] away, then the courts will most likely NOT find the violator guilty. If the pedestrian passes the vehicle which has yielded and the vehicle then proceeds through, the courts will most likely NOT find the violator guilty. One more thing, if a vehicle stops to allow a pedestrian to cross, then no matter what the circumstances are, all other vehicles must yield with that first vehicle or be subject to being cited for failing to yield with a vehicle who is yielding for a pedestrian."
COMMENT 264011	2012-03-13 05:23 PM
I hope no more new babies will be born. Enough already! I have all my pencils in a lock box.
COMMENT 264027	2012-03-13 05:54 PM
I have learned a lot from these posts......so if a very slow person is crossing 4 lanes and I am the first car closest to them to stop so they can enter the crosswalk I then have to wait until they reach the other side of the street which may take 5 minutes in some cases? I am guilty! As soon as they are safely past my car, I go. No more though I guess. I thought I was legal.
COMMENT 264098	2012-03-14 07:49 AM
I think it would be very beneficial to install flashing lights at the crossings on the busier roads, such as Cabrillo Boulevard, where there are many pedestrians. For those drivers who don't know the area, it can be difficult to spot a pedestrian crossing, particularly when it's dark. A simple flashing beacon at each side of the crossing would alert drivers more effectively than white paintmarks on the road, in my opinion.
COMMENT 264105	2012-03-14 08:14 AM
Instead of spending all this money on bulb-outs, which caused such a controversy, I don't understand why the city doesn't implement the flashing lights embedded directly into the stripes of the cross walk in the asphalt itself. Old town Goleta has these, as does San Luis Obispo, and they are very visible and wonderfully affective. Has our city council even considered these, I wonder?
COMMENT 264117	2012-03-14 08:53 AM
try crossing the street in a crosswalk at mission canyon or across foothill and see how many close calls you have...
COMMENT 264162P	2012-03-14 10:11 AM
I'm frequently a pedestrian in Old Town Goleta. I always cross with the light or at a crosswalk, often after waiting for streams of cars to pass before pushing the button. I was stunned when a bus stopped and waited for me to push the button and cross last week. I congratulate the bus driver for being observant, considerate, and legally aware (pedestrians have the right of way). I will almost always wait for busses, speeding cars, or streams of cars to pass before pushing the button. Share the road and be considerate and aware. It applies to all of us - cars, bicycles, pedestrians.

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