drivers in Pittsburgh (insurance, school, live in)

[minthotchocolate]

Hello all! I moved to Pittsburgh just recently and trying to adjust here. One thing I find odd in comparison with other places I lived is the driving culture. I always thought it to be a norm that a car slows down and stops if there is a pedestrian hanging out on a designated marked crossing in the end of the block on a quiet street. Here in Pittsburgh - not so much. In fact - not at all! I live in Shadyside. I can stand there for all eternity waiting to cross the street and no one will stop. Essentially, I need to start moving, and then maybe they stop right in front of me, or maybe they don't. Moreover, if I am already in the middle of the crossing, the car moving on the other half of the road doesn't make an effort to slow down or stop. It amazes me, especially since this is a quiet street, close to a school for deaf (!) children. And it happens every single time I cross the street there, and often in other quiet parts of Shadyside. I walk a lot, so I see this often.
I even heard angry yells a couple of times.

Is it some Pittsburgh thing? I lived in big cities and small towns, and Pittsburgh is so far the rudest in this respect. Or am I missing something here?

[Moby Hick]

Originally Posted by minthotchocolate

Is it some Pittsburgh thing? I lived in big cities and small towns, and Pittsburgh is so far the rudest in this respect. Or am I missing something here?

Yea, it gets pretty bad. And then if you give up on using the crosswalks because it is sometimes safer to cross in the middle of the block where nobody is turning, bunches of people will come post here about how pedestrians are worse than drivers. Carrying an umbrella helps, or your keys in your hand. Most of the drivers who don't worry about pedestrians are the kind who are terribly worried about getting a scratch in the paint of their car.

[Moby Hick]

If you're Canadian, it might take you a while to get used to it, but yelling back is allowed. It's never gotten me hit. Once a guy parked like he was going to get out of his car, but he didn't.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by minthotchocolate

Hello all! I moved to Pittsburgh just recently and trying to adjust here. One thing I find odd in comparison with other places I lived is the driving culture. I always thought it to be a norm that a car slows down and stops if there is a pedestrian hanging out on a designated marked crossing in the end of the block on a quiet street. Here in Pittsburgh - not so much. In fact - not at all! I live in Shadyside. I can stand there for all eternity waiting to cross the street and no one will stop. Essentially, I need to start moving, and then maybe they stop right in front of me, or maybe they don't. Moreover, if I am already in the middle of the crossing, the car moving on the other half of the road doesn't make an effort to slow down or stop. It amazes me, especially since this is a quiet street, close to a school for deaf (!) children. And it happens every single time I cross the street there, and often in other quiet parts of Shadyside. I walk a lot, so I see this often.
I even heard angry yells a couple of times.

I realize vehicles don't yield to crosswalks appropriately here, I've never had a problem crossing the road using a crosswalk. I think the timid are the ones who have the problem. In Pittsburgh, it's sort of a claim your territory type situation. Here's how I do it: Nobody will stop if you're standing on the curb. You literally need to step out. Time it right by making sure there is stopping distance for the cars approaching on the side of the road you're stepping into. Make eye contact with the drivers and stare them down. Don't dawdle. Keep moving. Cars on the other side will continue to move until you reach the middle. As you are reaching the middle, maintain eye contact with the driver approaching from the other direction. If you stop in the middle, they view you as yielding and will take advantage of it. If you think they aren't going to stop, put the palm of your hand outward towards them, like a traffic cop hand signal for stop, and keep moving. If you stop, waiting for them to stop, they won't likely stop. Once you cross over the first lane cars will start passing over the crosswalk behind you because you've cleared their part of the crosswalk. Keep moving. Unless it is obvious that you are physically challenged, taking a leisurely stroll will appear to drivers that you're being inconsiderate of their stopping for you. This is when they will likely yell at you.

I realize this is completely foreign to people who have transplanted to Pittsburgh from somewhere else. I'm not defending it. I'm just explaining the mindset of the drivers. Most native Pittsburghers don't complain about crosswalks here because it's not foreign to us. We're used to it and we do know how to safely get across the street. As Moby mentioned, jaywalking in the middle of the block is often easier because you only have to worry about cars coming from both directions and not cars turning onto the street. I think it's rare for Pittsburghers to complain about jaywalkers. Pittsburgh is a jaywalking city. Plus, jaywalkers aren't slowing down traffic. They wait for stopping distance in both directions and move very quickly across the street.

If you're uncomfortable being an aggressive crosswalker, continue to timidly use crosswalks. For your own safety, do what you are comfortable doing.

[Q-tip motha]

Originally Posted by minthotchocolate

Hello all! I moved to Pittsburgh just recently and trying to adjust here. One thing I find odd in comparison with other places I lived is the driving culture. I always thought it to be a norm that a car slows down and stops if there is a pedestrian hanging out on a designated marked crossing in the end of the block on a quiet street. Here in Pittsburgh - not so much. In fact - not at all! I live in Shadyside. I can stand there for all eternity waiting to cross the street and no one will stop. Essentially, I need to start moving, and then maybe they stop right in front of me, or maybe they don't. Moreover, if I am already in the middle of the crossing, the car moving on the other half of the road doesn't make an effort to slow down or stop. It amazes me, especially since this is a quiet street, close to a school for deaf (!) children. And it happens every single time I cross the street there, and often in other quiet parts of Shadyside. I walk a lot, so I see this often.
I even heard angry yells a couple of times.

Is it some Pittsburgh thing? I lived in big cities and small towns, and Pittsburgh is so far the rudest in this respect. Or am I missing something here?

You're going to have to practice your crossing scowl. I feel like a historical figure that best illustrates the effectiveness of this was one John Brown. Simply walk out in the road (give them plenty of time to react, and make sure you make eye contact), and do your thing after they stop.

This should be your initial expression. It communicates a certain strength of will, that you are willing to take a hit, spend a few days in the hospital, and litigate if necessary. That just maybe you're willing to leverage your life for an insurance payoff for your loved ones. That a certain inner darkness lurks just below the surface that they are best not discovering:




When they allow you to cross the following communicates "wise choice my friend". The Dos Equis man was inspired specifically by this picture:




This one is a good expression for someone who stopped at the last second, or they look overly annoyed by being inconvenienced for the 3 seconds that it takes you to cross:



When you almost get hit you have to go with the big guns (rifle and bible are your call). You don't know what he's going to do? Is he going to light himself on fire and fling himself on your hood? Is he capable of flinging excrement? You have awoken a demon dear impatient motorist, and hell will surely follow him:

[bradjl2009]

Didn't we have another thread about pedestrian treatment in Pittsburgh before?

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by Hopes

As Moby mentioned, jaywalking in the middle of the block is often easier because you only have to worry about cars coming from both directions and not cars turning onto the street. I think it's rare for Pittsburghers to complain about jaywalkers. Pittsburgh is a jaywalking city. Plus, jaywalkers aren't slowing down traffic. They wait for stopping distance in both directions and move very quickly across the street.

I suppose as a transplant I view this differently. Jaywalkers frequently DO slow me down, especially in Squirrel Hill, as they just force their way out between vehicles and then slowly amble across Forbes Avenue (which has a large and well-respected mid-block crosswalk between Murray and Shady) or across Murray Avenue (which has a signalized crosswalk seemingly every few hundred feet) as if they don't have a care in the world. I don't yield to jaywalkers in Squirrel Hill for this reason and WILL drive around them. However, I differ greatly from natives in that I DO stop if I see someone waiting at the curbside to enter a crosswalk, especially in Shadyside and Regent Square, sometimes risking a rear-end collision in the process and having to flip off the person behind me as they honk at me since I had the "audacity" to yield the right-of-way to the pedestrian.

I myself DO jaywalk, but I run like bloody murder across the street and leave enough space to make sure no motorist in either direction would be slowed down in the process. If fellow jaywalkers don't have that same sort of courtesy, then I'm driving around them; yielding to them (often at the expense of missing green lights ahead of me) just rewards their bad behavior and encourages them to do it more frequently. Time is money in my profession, and I refuse to lose time (and money) because some people are too lazy to walk half a block to a crosswalk OR refuse to hurry while jaywalking. If you want to jaywalk, then fine, as long as you rush. If you casually jaywalk I'm either going to drive AROUND you OR honk at you.

[sealie]

Probably after that elderly lady got killed in a crosswalk in a pedestrian area (Regent Square) last November. Must not have looked mean enough, or been native enough to know the special rules for crossing safely. Or been too timid.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by Q-tip motha

You're going to have to practice your crossing scowl.

The other day I just walked right out into traffic as I crossed Beechwood Boulevard at the WELL-MARKED (yet completely ignored) crosswalk at the intersection of Loretta Street while making a delivery just as an experiment. Needless to say I came pretty close to being hit, but I didn't actually get hit. I gave each motorist a very angry scowl in the process.

Mid-block jaywalkers shouldn't be yielded to, as it just further "rewards" bad behavior.

Those who are entering crosswalks SHOULD be yielded to.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by Q-tip motha

You're going to have to practice your crossing scowl.

LOL LOL LOL OK this post wins some sort of award for best post of the day. The Crossing Scowl! Love it. Must remember to do this!