Did You Know? Safety Tips & Upcoming Safety Events
Pedestrian Safety Tips: New Hampshire’s Laws Concerning Yielding to a Pedestrian in a Crosswalk
Crosswalks are supposed to provide a place for pedestrians to safely cross a road. However, some pedestrians may get a false sense of security and need to always be on alert to motorists who either are ignoring the pedestrian’s right of way or who fail to observe someone in a crosswalk. While New Hampshire law requires a driver to yield the right of way to a pedestrian in a crosswalk, pedestrians are also required to exercise care to avoid accidents. New Hampshire Revised Statute 265:35 states: "No pedestrian shall suddenly leave a curb or other place of safety and walk or run into the path of a vehicle which is so close as to constitute an immediate hazard." Therefore, just because you have a crosswalk doesn't necessarily mean you have the right of way. Pedestrians also have to obey traffic-control signals. If there is no marked crosswalk, the pedestrian has to yield the right of way (RSA 265:36).
So, while drivers need to be aware of where they are and what's going on around them, the pedestrian at the same time needs to be aware when they cross the roadway into oncoming traffic. Simply put, if a car is in a position where if you stepped out into the roadway, you're clearly going to get hit, you don't have the right of way.
New Hampshire state law also prevents drivers from passing another vehicle that is stopped at a crosswalk to allow a pedestrian to cross the street.