It seems like no one respects pedestrian crossings where I live (Chiba). I often walk up to a zebra crossing, look at the oncoming car and am confused as they blow right past the warning and stop line. Some drivers even stare at me like I’m the stupid one for expecting them to stop. Has anyone had similar experiences?
*Edit:
I forgot to add, I am usually pushing my son in his stroller. That’s why I don’t step out first.*
47 comments
I just start crossing if the car is far enough away. If they stare at me I stop and stare at them. They look away fairly fast after that.😂
A lot of old people around where I live raise their hand at the crossing and I noticed cars stop for them more often. So I started doing that too. It seems to work better than passively waiting for some car to stop.
Yeah, it is like a “suggestion” in my area. I only cross if it is clear or the car is plenty far off. Some drivers are cool though and stop if they see you waiting to cross.
You can get ticketed for not stopping if there is someone trying to cross(歩行者妨害)
My understanding as a driver and as a pedestrian is that the car has an obligation to “yield to pedestrians”. But the mechanics of this are that a car will stop if the pedestrian is “in” the crosswalk or “about to cross”.
The “about to cross” is sort of vague but in practice, it tends to mean people in motion.
Pragmatically it means putting a foot into the crosswalk – and of course stay alert so you can see if they plan to stop or not!
In my area I constantly see cars drive through stop signs and crosswalks without stopping all the time.
A colleague of mine once told me off for slowing down to stop as I approached a zebra crossing where there were kids waiting to cross. The thinking being that no-one else did so this was dangerous as it would confuse the kids. To be fair none of them crossed and it did look like they were freaked out…
I was once on the side of a quiet street at night using my phone, not to far away from a zebra crossing, and someone stopped, then honked at me apparently for not crossing. Therefore it is logical to conclude that you’re not using your phone, or at least holding it close enough to your face in order to communicate to drivers your intention to cross the street
Man up and walk.
If they hit you, feel free to sue.
But honestly, they know they get away with it. I lived in sakura-shi for a month at a friend’s. Noticed the same thing. Gave up and just walked. They will stop. They won’t hit you.
Yeah it sucks especially when it’s poor weather/very hot and you’re waiting to cross with your baby and like 5+ cars just pass right by and you have to wait forever to cross.
when i pointed this out to one of my driving instructors in saitama, he issued me a apology on behalf of the drivers of japan for them ignoring this law and pedestrians in general.
From a report I saw on TV traffic rules require drivers to yield to pedestrians at designated crosswalks. Of course, not getting run over is job one, but you should not feel any shame about making a car wait for you to cross the street at designated locations.
The report I saw was a driver getting pulled over and ticketed by the police for not waiting for the pedestrian to cross, even though in this case the pedestrian had signaled to the car to go ahead (all was captured by camera). Not very nice for the driver, but was a clear illustration of the rules.
I honestly didn’t even know this was a law until just a few years ago because where I live 99.9% of drivers ignore them. That being said, I only stop if the person waiting is showing a clear intention, sometimes people are just fiddling with their phones. I also am paranoid about a car behind me smashing into me if I stop for one.
There is a koban on the corner near my House. It looks out directly to the pedestrian crossing where the little kids do the group crossing for school. I noticed the cars didn’t stop at all unless someone was actively walking across and even then, would fly in and hit the brakes hard like it was a surprise. I never saw a policeman outside the koban. I went in and played the dumb gaijin card. I said in my country cars have to stop for pedestrians all the time, and especially so on crossings. I’m seeing cars ignore pedestrians, so obviously things are different in Japan, so what are the rules here. He was a bit shy about the whole thing and told me the rules are exactly the same but people just don’t care, so be careful on that pedestrian crossing and only cross when it’s very clear. He made no indication that anybody was going to do anything about it.
They’re pretty useless – I usually just put a foot out and hope/demand someone stops. That said, here in Fukuoka, the amount of cars that have stopped to let me cross without a crossing is also crazy – often at dangerous spots or where there’s so much traffic coming the other way it would be impossible. Had a car stop for me on a dual carriageway once with cars in the other lane travelling at speed. Crazy. Road safety here is a joke all round really.
Yes, it’s annoying.
Just start walking.
Road Traffic Act requires drivers to stop at a zebra crossing if there are people who look like they’re about to cross. Got my license last year and they showed some rather disturbing stats. Despite the requirement under law to stop, only about 12 percent of drivers in Tokyo actually do, according to traffic surveys. I’ve seen figures suggesting it may be as low as 5 percent. My experience as a pedestrian in Tokyo and nearly being hit by rouge taxi drivers confirms that.
Only going by the one mid street zebra crossing near my home that I use multiple times a day to get to the conbini or station, the majority of cars stop. And nearly always when I’m using my bicycle with child seat. Just my anecdotal take.
This post is gold – thank you OP!
It’s a big problem here in Japan. Many seniors don’t even notice pedestrians, while other adult drivers never stop and won’t change unless cops start ticketing aggressively. It’s the same issue with running red lights. We need cameras at least.
Sadly cops have their priorities wrong. I’ve nearly been killed multiple times by bad drivers, but never seen a cop nearby… yet the cops are active enough doing other things like randomly body-searching me for a knife at 11pm outside my apartment and asking for my residence card.
*shrug*
Not stopping is almost universal, but different prefectures have different levels of who actually stop.
I just cross. Not my responsibility if someone is too stupid to stop.
You’re not in the wrong. Where I come from people are somewhat borderline that kind of behavior. As others said, you have to sort of assert dominance either by making eye contact, raising your hand if necessary (I wouldn’t personally do that though) and put your feet in to show you’re about to cross. That should cause a reaction on the drivers like “oh ok, he is comitted to crossing” and they should slow down. As you notice that, it’s time to actually cross it.
It’s a Japan-wide problem, and it’s a huge problem. As others have commented, they are required to stop (like the rest of the world).
Japanese people are so used to cars not stopping, that when a kind driver actually does stop, the pedestrian is confused and doesn’t cross right away.
I’ve noticed that in Japan, they won’t slow down unless you’re actually in the road.
In my home country, you wait before stepping into the road, the driver slows down, THEN you cross.
Here you just go and they slow down before hitting you after you’re on the road.
It took me a long time to figure that out. It’s dangerous but I guess people in Japan have a lot more trust for drivers.
You can give em a little taste of the ol’ tobidashi
It’s not just Chiba, it’s everywhere. If there are set rules or protocols, people are very courteous. But where basic manners and courtesy are required, many people are often lacking in grace.
Same in Okinawa. It seems that some people here forget 60% of the traffic rules as soon as they leave the 運転免許センター. That or they just got their licence from a Happy Meal.
I love cars who blow right through the stop line and then stop in the middle of zebra/bike lane for cars to go by, sometimes forever. Very annoying. Only one place every one stops because the police goes there once a month to fill their quotas 😉 (too bad they ONLY go there…)
Twice on bicycle I gently bumped the side of the car on purpose (not even enough to make a mark) and they just 60 degrees bowed at me asking me if I was ok. But being a male without a baby cart makes it easier obviously
I noticed that my local pedestrian crossing near the station has really good stop rate but everywhere else its like 50/50. I usually start walking if they are far enough away, never had any issues.
Years ago, I asked my Japanese friends about this, and they explained that stopping a car to let someone pass, then restarting it, actually consumes more time and energy compared to simply continuing to drive while the other person waits.
It does make sense?
Stare at the incoming driver. Helps a lot.
You will fail driving test if you don’t stop when someone is at the crossing. But, just like everything here, learn in to pass test, then f*** all after that.
Worst, even when a car stops on one side, cars on the other side refuse to stop. Regardless whetherr old ppl or stroller is crossing.
Just a frustrating thing anywhere in Japan (afaik,as a foreigner). I read a research report a year or so back and it was some ridiculously small number who stopped (maybe 5~10%, but cant remember). Seems to me like sitting through those 2hr lessons when getting a replacement licence really is a waste of time.
I’ve stopped for students crossing the road (near Sagamiono station there is a very busy school crossing) and almost been rear ended countless times by speeding dickheads. A few times when I’ve stopped, kids will start to cross and the vehicle approaching from the opposite lane will look like it’s going to barrel through.
Sometimes they do, barely missing pedestrians. Sometimes they stop and glare at me “for letting them cross, and wasting their time”.
It’s a hit and miss in Japan.
My worst experience was at Fuji Highlands when I had my 2 year old son in my arms, I was crossing the crossing, no car close, and had some young guys rev and start speeding down the road towards me. I gave my son to my wife and told her to cross and I stood dead in front of the car, pointed at the driver and told him to slow the fuck down or I’d pull him through his windshield. (Yes I know what you’re all thinking, I’d be in a lot of shit and probably deported).
He bowed his head and said sorry. They weren’t laughing. The thing here is, it’s STANDARD for drivers to get away with it. It’s messed up, and the cops should really be enforcing it more.
Yep, this is pretty universal in Japan.
That’s really interesting to hear because I live in inaka and cars let pedestrians cross even when there is absolutely no crosswalk in sight. In my experience at least, 95% of the time the car would wait for the pedestrian. Hmmm.
What??? not all cars stop at zebra crossings back in the uk either !!! Here in Japan or back in England I usually wait until the car starts to slow down or stops then cross !
Although it is law to stop at these pedestrian crossings, and is taught at driving schools to do so. Drivers in Japanese only stop at it if they are doing a drivers license test. Once they have their license though, they never stop at these types of crossings since no one usually stops at them. I don’t believe local pedestrians expect drivers to stop at them either..
Wow i thought it was normal for cars to stop on pedestrian crossings if somebody is waiting to cross it because that’s how it is from where i live and that’s what is taught in driving schools.
Zebra crossing etiquette in Japan is appalling. I now give the driver a “Geijin deathstare” and that usually does the trick and they stop.
drivers here are too busy texting or watching the in-car TV to stop
They never stop. Just wait for there to be no cars and cross then. It’s standard in Japan not to stop because the people in the cars behind yours will get mad at you for stopping and no one wants this. This is why the only person who ever stops is the last person. It is expected of all people in cars to not stop. This is why so many children die on school crossings.
Japanese pedestrians just cross without waiting. You only need to step out a tiny bit and they’re not going to hit you if you aren’t right in their path.
It’s a crime not to stop.
Step out just a little. If they don’t stop, get their license plate and report them.
Weirdly I have noticed that people in my neck of the woods have suddenly started to pay attention to pedestrian crossings. I think maybe there was a clampdown by police a year or so ago. I guess it hasn’t reached Chiba yet.
I still always wait until a car has clearly stopped to cross though…
When I went to the driving school in Tokyo a few years back, they showed the results of a survey they did where the police would monitor how many cars would stop at a crossing when a pedestrian was waiting. Was less than 20%.
Take the mindset that drivers won’t stop here.
Must be regional. Pretty respected down south.
Like I wouldn’t dart out there but if a driver sees you they will likely yield.
Then you do the customary one hand “Sumimasen” slice in front of your face with a slight bow. Easy peazy.
I saw a guy drive through a red light at a pedestrian crossing to get to a store, he sure picked a bad moment because he did it in front of a police car and they pulled up to him immediately with the sirens.