By: James P. Krupka, Esq.

Most of us know that the crossing of a thoroughfare is best accomplished by walking within marked crosswalks. Drivers are more likely to notice a person crossing a street within a crosswalk, as opposed to the middle of a street. It is for this reason that New Jersey law requires pedestrians to cross roads within a crosswalk. Specifically, N.J.S.A. 39:4-34 requires pedestrians to cross roadways within a crosswalk, or in the absence of a crosswalk and where not otherwise prohibited, at a right angle to the roadway, wherever traffic is not controlled by a police officer or a traffic control signal. In addition, N.J.S.A. 39:4-36 requires every pedestrian upon a roadway at any point other than within a marked crosswalk to yield the right of way to all vehicles.

A pedestrian struck by a vehicle while the pedestrian is within a crosswalk is usually found to be free of contributory negligence for the happening of the accident, so long as reasonable observations are made by the pedestrian. A pedestrian struck by a vehicle while crossing a roadway outside of a marked crosswalk can still potentially recover damages from the operator of the vehicle, so long as the pedestrian’s negligence is not greater than that of the motor vehicle operator. Our state Supreme Court has ruled that whether a pedestrian is guilty of comparative negligence in such a situation depends on several factors, such as, among other things: the pedestrian’s familiarity with the roadway; the observations made by the pedestrian before crossing the roadway; the distance between the pedestrian and the defendant’s vehicle at the time of the pedestrian entering the roadway; the speed of the vehicle and the speed limit on the road; the lighting conditions; and, the distance traversed by the pedestrian prior to impact. Many other issues can also be relevant to this determination. Because the aforesaid are issues of fact, not issues of law, it is for a jury, not the trial judge, to determine whether the pedestrian bears any comparative negligence.

Clearly, crossing a street outside of a crosswalk does not bar a pedestrian from recovering damages for injuries sustained by an impact with a motor vehicle; however, crossing a street outside of a crosswalk can have seriously negative consequences not only on one’s ability to recover damages, but also one’s ability to continue living. Therefore, it is wise to avoid crossing roadways at any point other than in a designated crosswalk.