Waved through a zebra crossing - legal position?

[helston90]

I was commuting to work this morning through a town, approaching a zebra crossing which had two people holding hands about to cross so I started slowing to stop.

However, one of the peds clearly waved me through as I was on a slight climb and he didn't want me to lose my momentum.

There was no other traffic around, just me and them.

I went through and said thank you very much, but then wondered should I have gone? Is someone able to say 'oh no we're fine you ignore the highway code chap and keep going through the crossing'?

 

[MossCommuter]

traffic does not have to stop until someone has moved onto the crossing

 

[Dan B]

If they were merely about to cross and had not yet stepped off the kerb there is no legal obligation to stop for them anyway

 

[Crackle]

Unless I can be certain of stopping traffic behind me, I don't give way at Zebra crossings on a bike because I've had it before that the car behind me didn't stop.

 

[mjr]

If they were merely about to cross and had not yet stepped off the kerb there is no legal obligation to stop for them anyway

but it's very nice that you offered to!

IIRC the only things that are unique to cycling are that we can overtake vehicles queuing in the zig-zag lead-up area (the zig-zags are equivalent to double-white lines for motorists) and that we're allowed to stop in the crossing (but we still must give way to any pedestrians in it).

 

[I like Skol]

This kind of thing really winds me up, especially when it is a motorist! I have had many occasions where a motorist has wrongly conceded right-of-way presumably 'to help the poor cyclist'. This actually massively increases the risk for me, the poor cyclist because as soon as they deviate from the accepted rules of the road it leads to confusion among all the other road users who the kind person has failed to take into consideration.
I usually just sit there and scowl at them until they do the right thing!

 

[Rooster1]

I would stop anyway and thank them for the offer, thanks, but no thanks

 

[mjr]

I usually just sit there and scowl at them until they do the right thing!

Won't that just encourage them to think "ungrateful swine" and not be considerate to the next cyclist they meet?

If they've actually unambiguously stopped and I think it's safe to cross once they've stopped, then I go and wave thanks. I don't agree that "as soon as they deviate from the accepted rules of the road it leads to confusion among all the other road users" because many road users don't know the rules to start with!

However, if someone stops in the nearside lane to let me out to go straight over or right and I can see that it's not safe because of an approaching vehicle in an offside lane, or possibly just that they're blocking my view of an offside lane, then I'll check there's no other cyclists following me and ideally stop, shake my head and wave them through so I can see properly.

Motorists who wave/flash other motorists to cross your lane in conflict with you are far more annoying. Also, horse riders who wave motorists to overtake into cyclists.

 

[jarlrmai]

The worst is drivers who are turning in right into a T junction as I'm emerging from it and turning right, who stop to wave me out, thanks now I have to check again for cars from my right, and cars coming from my left from behind you and over taking all my planning to negotiate the junction is gone and if I don't move you look annoyed. Please don't do that, just get on with it.

 

[Dan B]

but it's very nice that you offered to!

Indeed. The legal situation at zebras is rubbish: nobody need stop for you until you have moved out into the carriageway, which you are advised not to do until the drivers have stopped

 

[mustang1]

This is true. And completely ridiculous.

 

[mustang1]

What's the deal.with zebra crossings? I see the zig zag line and you can't park there. Then I see a bus stop right where the zigzag lines are. Which Muppets design this stuff.

Side rant: some newspaper guy wanted to park his trolley of newspapers next to the ATM I was using and asked me to move. I gave him a f u stare. He didn't budge so I did.

 

[slowmotion]

I've always acted on the belief that you have no obligation to stop for a zebra unless there is somebody actually on the road, but good manners suggests that it would be polite to stop if somebody was waiting on the pavement. I think that the only reason that I passed my driving test was because I spotted a very elderly lady shuffling towards a zebra and stopped, a good five seconds before I was obliged to by the Highway Code. A magnificent Virtue Signalling display.