Whether you walk at lunchtime in a busy urban area or take a leisurely stroll in your neighborhood, Florida laws work to protect the rights of pedestrians. On roads with traffic control signals or crosswalk markings, the law requires drivers to stop for crossing pedestrians until they are safely on the opposite half of the roadway.
While pedestrians may not simply step into the path of an on-coming vehicle, they do have the right-of-way even when there are no traffic control signals in place. The driver of a vehicle must yield the right-of-way, by slowing down or stopping, to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk when on the same half of the roadway as the vehicle is traveling.
Even with protections for pedestrians, Florida is among the top four states with the highest pedestrian fatality rates. Every year hundreds in Florida are injured or killed in crosswalks and on sidewalks, median strips, and traffic islands.
In Florida, pedestrian right-of-way violations are punishable as either a pedestrian violation or a moving violation. The law includes various ranges of fines and includes required performance of 120 community service hours in certain instances.
While the law is clear, and there are penalties for violating pedestrian safety, if you or a loved one is injured as a result of a violation and it’s not your fault, you need someone on your side to help secure just compensation for your injuries.
