Practice Areas

	Vehicle Accidents
	Slip and Fall
	Social Security Disability Benefits

I came very close to being hit by a car when crossing a street downtown Colorado Springs. Did I have the right of way?

Q: I came very close to being hit by a car when crossing a street downtown Colorado Springs. The street doesn't have any crosswalks or traffic lights, so I crossed when I felt the coming car had ample time to see me and slow down. This car didn't and simply swerved to avoid killing me. Did I have the right of way?

A:

The Uniform Vehicle Code and Colorado law say that drivers must yield to pedestrians in crosswalks, and that pedestrians must yield to vehicles everywhere else. This means that when someone like you needs to cross the street mid-block you should wait as long as necessary to safely enter the street. Had there been an accident though and a trial to establish fault, other elements could influence the court: the absence of crosswalks, the traffic, witnesses establishing that the driver had ample time to stop, etc.

Right of way laws are a compromise. If every car driver has to slam the brakes when someone bolts into the roadway, chaos will ensue. It is equally unacceptable to have pedestrians walk half a mile to reach a crosswalk, or wait sixty minutes before they can safely cross the street. In this last case, it is obviously for local authorities to correct the situation.

A last point worth mentioning is that drivers who are breaking any traffic law - speeding, driving under the influence or failing to use turn signals - may lose their right of way because pedestrians can't predict their unlawful behavior.