Submitted by johnstamos11 on Thu, 08/18/2011 - 16:32
I was recently cited for failure to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk. However, the girl in the crosswalk was mounted on a bicycle, not walking it. Furthermore, my view of the left side of the crosswalk was obstructed by a large dump truck in the left lane so there was no way for me to see a person on that half of the corsswalk. I believe the fact that the "pedestrian" was riding a bicycle, she was in fact a vehicle and therefore did not have the right of way.
Bicycle in cross walk
Interesting. As you know, MA law definitely requires motorist to yield to pedestrians in a cross walk. But is a bicyclist a pedestrian? In other areas, MA law treats bicyclist like motorists and requires them to observe the rules of the road. I don't know the answer. There are attorneys who specialize is traffic violation defense, and I'm sure one of them would let you know if it's worth disputing your ticket. Sorry I can't help, but let us know what you discover.