Studies conducted on the relative safety of crosswalks support minimal installation of marked crosswalks. The City of San Diego studied intersections at which there were both marked and unmarked crosswalks. The results were surprising. A pedestrian safety study in Long Beach, reported 8 times as many accidents in marked crosswalks compared to unmarked crosswalks. Similar studies in other cities have confirmed these results.
Research suggests that marked crosswalks give pedestrians a false sense of security.
Pedestrians often step off the curb into the crosswalk expecting drivers of vehicles approaching the crosswalk to stop. However, drivers frequently fail to stop and cause an accident. At all crosswalks, both marked and unmarked, it is the pedestrian s responsibility to be cautious and alert before starting to cross the street. At mid-block crosswalks on multilane roadways, another frequent factor in causing accidents involves the driver of a vehicle in the lane nearest to the curb stopping for a pedestrian that is waiting to cross or who is already in the crosswalk. The driver of a second vehicle traveling in the lane next to the stopped vehicle tries to pass the stopped vehicle and hits the pedestrian, even though it is illegal for drivers to pass a stopped vehicle at a crosswalk.