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Jaywalking Is Just the Tip of Indifference to Laws

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· It's unreasonable to walk far out of the way if the destination is across the street.

· To make jaywalking more safe, rules can be applied: Cars have the right-of-way, the jaywalker must cross so that cars do not have to adjust their speed, and pedestrians must not dart out between parked cars.

Drivers and pedestrians complain that the rules governing crossings are confusing. In fact, some traffic laws can be difficult to interpret. Many pedestrian safety advocates cite the following provision in the Virginia code, which they say is ambiguous and makes jaywalking difficult to stop:

"When crossing highways, pedestrians shall not carelessly or maliciously interfere with the orderly passage of vehicles. They shall cross, wherever possible, only at intersections or marked crosswalks. Where intersections contain no marked crosswalks, pedestrians shall not be guilty of negligence as a matter of law for crossing at any such intersection or between intersections when crossing by the most direct route."

The next time you see someone crossing in the middle of a Virginia roadway, try to decide: Is the person maliciously interfering or just jaywalking?

Made to Be Broken?

Here are some more letters about what we can expect from others on the road, whether we're walking, biking or driving. The misbehavior the writers observe provokes concern, exasperation and anger.

Dear Dr. Gridlock:

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