I know, it is the craziest thing ever that pedestrians actually walk on this weird railroad-looking figure on the road. This week for me has been nothing but dodging people, and even myself, away from cars who, for some reason, find it OK to just fly through a crosswalk. So the biggest questions that I want to ask are, "what is a crosswalk? What makes a crosswalk unique? And why do cars yield to crosswalks?"

Well for the common “crosswalker” we call this crosswalk our way of travel. It acts as an extension of a sidewalk that sometimes has a signal for us to cross or not. As pedestrians, we have to wait when we see a big red hand tell us to stop and proceed when the light is a picture of a person walking. Pretty simple actually. Who would have known that such an advanced concept provides safety to people walking?

I want to underline a crucial aspect to a crosswalk. Pedestrians, except when signaled, have the right of way. This does not mean you can fly through a crosswalk if someone is just now stepping on the crosswalk. If you are driving in your beefed-up Jeep approaching a crosswalk at 55 mph, you are either blind and/or speeding. Never, in any case, should you fly through the crosswalk in an attempt to avoid stopping politely for a pedestrian so they can get on with their day. Believe me, you are in a vehicle and you will end up getting to where you are going before the pedestrian is. So please, apply your brakes, and if it is an old lady, get out and help them.

Now let me introduce a new concept. Being on your phone while stopped at a red light is the same as texting and driving. The other day, I was patiently waiting to cross the road seeing that a white car on the other side. As I got the signal, the white car decided to turn right when I was halfway done with the crosswalk (though they could have when the light was red). I will admit they scared the crap out of me, not literally, and I just kept walking. What happened was that the driver was texting and waiting for the light to change green.

The driver did not check the crosswalk for anyone. I personally never let someone get away with aimlessly turning while a pedestrian is walking. When the light turns green and you are turning, this does not mean aimlessly turn. In fact, this means that you have to clear the intersection even if you are going straight. Always check a crosswalk before proceeding to move.

The other day I was walking to class and noticed that a car was not slowing down as they were approaching the sidewalk. I was behind a woman at the time and saw that the car was on a direct path to hit, or curve, around her and attempt to hit me. So I quickly walked to the left of her shielding her from the oncoming car. The Jeep, of course, stopped once they saw a tall person walk in their way. I even got right up to the hood of the car to make them understand how really important it is to stop when pedestrians are using a crosswalk.

Near the NG Suites, other students are exiting the parking deck and sometimes fly through the stop sign or aimlessly block the crosswalk. The crosswalk should act as a wall for a car before they proceed. The other day I was walking and the woman was about an inch from hitting me and my girlfriend. I looked at her and saw she was on her phone and in a hurry to get somewhere. I looked at her, looked at how close the car was to me, and just shook my head in disgust. I simply kept walking and my heart was racing at how close the car was to me.

North Georgia has a really bad problem of people almost hitting students at crosswalks. Sometimes it is other students who try to hit people. This is absolutely dangerous. So please, whenever you see a crosswalk, yield to pedestrians. If you are at a light and the light changes green, do not turn until the crosswalk is clear; otherwise, you are forcing the pedestrians to pick up the pace just because you are in a hurry. In the end, be polite and courteous to pedestrians. The same exact laws that drivers complain about are the same laws that keep pedestrians and the driver safe. The last thing you want on your record is that you hit a person, which, in itself, should be extremely hard to do.