Walk on the Safe Side – Pedestrian Safety

We Are All Pedestrians

Wisconsin law defines a “pedestrian” as anyone afoot or using a wheelchair — manually or mechanically powered — or another low-powered mobility device specifically designed for use by physically disabled individuals.

Pedestrians Have the Right of Way

• Yield to pedestrians on sidewalks and those already crossing at intersections.
• Yield to pedestrians crossing highways or walking on shoulders.
• Never pass a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk or intersection for a pedestrian.
• Bicyclists must yield to pedestrians.
• Be especially cautious around young or disabled pedestrians — give them extra room.

Distracted pedestrians can be as dangerous as distracted drivers.

Safety Tips for Young & Disabled Pedestrians

• Blind Pedestrians: Stop at least 10 feet away from anyone using a white cane or guide dog.
• School Bus Stops: Stop at least 20 feet from a bus with flashing red lights — in both directions — until lights are off.
• School Zones & Crosswalks: Obey posted speed limits and yield to children in crosswalks or intersections.

General Safety Tips for Pedestrians

• Use sidewalks; if none, walk facing traffic.
• Wear bright or reflective clothing to stay visible.
• Cross only at corners or marked crosswalks.
• Stop at the curb and look left, right, then left again before crossing.
• Wait for approaching vehicles to pass before stepping into the street.
• Check for drivers in parked vehicles before crossing in front of them.
• Watch for bicycles on both sidewalks and roads.

Sources: National Highway Safety Administration (nhtsa.dot.gov), Wisconsin Department of Transportation (dot.wisconsin.gov), and Manual of Traffic Signs by Richard C. Moeur (trafficsign.us).

School Bus Safety

The law requires all school buses in Wisconsin to have flashing amber lights, used as a warning to drivers that the bus is preparing to stop when the flashing lights are activated.

1 | When children are getting off the bus, they should walk straight ahead and move at least 10 feet away from the bus.

2 | The front of the bus is the most dangerous area. Within the danger zone are a number of “blind spots” in which the driver cannot see small children.

Children must be educated to move forward away from the bus until they can see the bus driver’s face; then the bus driver can see them as well

3 | A passing car cannot see a child since the large bus hides the children from the sight of the vehicle.

4 | Small children are in danger in back of the bus since the bus driver cannot see these children at all.

RED LIGHT vs. YELLOW LIGHTS STOPS

Safety Tips for Young & Disabled Pedestrians

• A driver of a vehicle meeting, from either direction, a stopped school bus with flashing red lights - may not proceed until the flashing red lights have stopped.
• Vehicle drivers proceeding in the opposite direction on a divided highway need not stop for a school bus with flashing red lights. A divided highway is a highway with a permanent structure preventing vehicles from crossing from one side to the other.

RED LIGHTS MAY NOT FLASH IN:

• School bus loading areas - where the bus is entirely off the traveled portion of the road.
• Drivers need to stop in residential or business districts where students or other authorized passengers are being loaded or unloaded, and sidewalks with curbs are present on both sides of the road—unless a local ordinance, such as in Sturtevant, states otherwise.
• A special education bus on a one-way street where a sidewalk and curb are laid on both sides of the road and the student needs to cross the road, shall use the flashing red lights.