page_title: Jaywalking
hierarchical_section_title: Jaywalking
context_page_description: Jaywalking occurs when a pedestrian walks in or crosses a roadway that has traffic, other than at a suitable crossing point, or otherwise in disregard of traffic rules. The term originated with "jay-drivers", people who drove horse-drawn carriages and automobiles on the wrong side of the road, before taking its current meaning.
  Jaywalking laws vary widely by jurisdiction. In many countries such as the United Kingdom, the word is not generally used and there are no laws limiting how pedestrians can use public highways. This has caused confusion among tourists and other people visiting countries with such laws.
  Legal texts in other countries use different concepts, such as Rules applicable to pedestrians in the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic. One member of this convention, the United Kingdom, does not have jaywalking laws; its Highway Code relies on the pedestrian making their own judgment on whether it is safe to cross based on the Green Cross Code. Pedestrians do have priority over turning vehicles. Rule 170 of the UK's Highway Code instructs a driver to "watch out for pedestrians crossing a road into which you are turning.
context_section_description: Jaywalking occurs when a pedestrian walks in or crosses a roadway that has traffic, other than at a suitable crossing point, or otherwise in disregard of traffic rules. The term originated with "jay-drivers", people who drove horse-drawn carriages and automobiles on the wrong side of the road, before taking its current meaning.
  Jaywalking laws vary widely by jurisdiction. In many countries such as the United Kingdom, the word is not generally used and there are no laws limiting how pedestrians can use public highways. This has caused confusion among tourists and other people visiting countries with such laws. 
  Legal texts in other countries use different concepts, such as Rules applicable to pedestrians in the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic. One member of this convention, the United Kingdom, does not have jaywalking laws; its Highway Code relies on the pedestrian making their own judgment on whether it is safe to cross based on the Green Cross Code.  Pedestrians do have priority over turning vehicles. Rule 170 of the UK's Highway Code instructs a driver to "watch out for pedestrians crossing a road into which you are turning. If they have started to cross they have priority, so give way."
caption: Sign prohibiting jaywalking in Singapore's Orchard Road
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