Yield to Pedestrian
Channelizing Devices
Have
you ever walked up to a crosswalk at a street corner and felt like a second-class
citizen because the passing cars just won't stop for you? Well, help is
here. In 2001, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation purchased
over 500 crosswalk signs (official name "Yield to Pedestrian Channelizing
Devices") to assist pedestrians in normal street crossing. The signs
are designed to remind motorists of Pennsylvania law, which states, "When
traffic-controls are not in place or not in operation, the driver of a
vehicle shall yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian crossing the roadway
within any marked crosswalk or within any unmarked crosswalk at an intersection."
(Title 75, Section 3542 (a))
They
are placed in the approach of a painted (marked) crosswalk, in the centerline
of a road. To achieve proper association in the mind of the motorist,
they are placed close to (but not in) the crosswalk. However, if turning
trucks or other long wheelbase vehicles is a concern, the devices can
be placed back as much as 50 feet.
Why are we recommending these devices instead of the traditional post-mounted signs at the curbside? With the increasing complexity of the driving environment within the curbs, the post-mounted signs may go unobserved as motorists focus all of their attention in the street from curb to curb. These signs lie directly within the driver's line of sight and are thought to be much more noticeable.
One question that has arisen from the enforcement community: are they enforceable without any additional language in Title 75? The crosswalk signs simply remind motorists to obey the existing law and stop for pedestrians trying to cross. So for purposes of law enforcement, they are enforceable because they simply remind the motorist of existing law.
For
further information about the devices, contact your PENNDOT District Bicycle/Pedestrian
Coordinator, District Safety Press Officer or the PENNDOT Central Office
Bicycle/Pedestrian Program.