Did you know? The term crosswalk has very little to do with the striped steppe animal. While the first German crosswalk in Munich in 1952 still bore the name "Dickstrichkette", the "Zebra" campaign by the Hamburg police in 1954 led to the new name. Anyone who stopped at a crosswalk back then was given a sticker with a zebra on it: the abbreviation stood for "sign of a particularly considerate driver". Since then, the new name crosswalk has spread throughout Germany for crosswalks.
In Lippe, our district service and the road safety advisory service practise crossing the road correctly with kindergarten and primary school children throughout the district. As part of road safety education, even the youngest children are taught about the dangers lurking in road traffic and how to move safely in public spaces. An important part of these activities: Crossing a crosswalk!
Rule number 1: People on foot or in wheelchairs are always specially protected at crosswalks and have absolute priority over all vehicles - even if they are just approaching the crosswalk. Vehicles must therefore stop and remain stationary until pedestrians have crossed the crossing. Incidentally, violations are considered an administrative offense and are punishable by a fine of at least 80 euros.
During traffic education, however, our officers often noticed that many drivers are apparently unaware of this regulation. In particular, it was found that some people in cars had little or no awareness of the area around a crosswalk and therefore did not stop their vehicle in good time - even though children and police were wearing highly visible, bright clothing including signal colors. In addition to some who simply drive through the crosswalk, it was observed that other people stop their vehicles well before the crosswalk or roll on at low speed and signal a "flashing light". This behavior is also wrong and does not serve the cause of road safety education: children of kindergarten and primary school age are still new to road traffic and cannot reasonably assess such driving behavior - which can lead to dangerous situations.
The following additional rules must be observed at crosswalks with bicycles:
- In contrast to pedestrians, people on bicycles do not have the right of way on the crosswalk: they may ride across the crosswalk, but must wait until the path is clear.
- If a car/truck/motorcycle has to slow down or stop on the crosswalk because of a cyclist, the person on the bike risks a fine for avoidable obstruction
- If an accident occurs when a cyclist crosses the crosswalk, the cyclist is at risk of contributory negligence.
- The basic rule is: If you dismount and push, you have the right of way! If you push your bike, you are walking and therefore have priority. This also applies to anyone using their bike like a scooter: Anyone rolling on their bike while standing on a pedal is considered a pedestrian.
- But what about children who are out and about on a bike? Children on bicycles do not actually have the right of way at crosswalks. They only have priority if they dismount and push their bike. But: According to Section 3 Paragraph 2a of the German Road Traffic Regulations (StVO), special consideration for children applies to everyone! Drivers must behave in such a way that children are not endangered. Therefore, they must wait even if a child on a bicycle wants to cross the crosswalk.