Toucan Crossings

Toucan crossings are often combined with puffin crossing technology. They are exactly the same as puffin crossings except that cyclists will often have a separate pathway so that the cyclists do not need to mingle with pedestrians or dismount in order to cross the road.

Pelican Crossings

Pelican crossings are different from Puffin crossings because they have a flashing amber light after the red light. Flashing amber means you may drive ahead if the road is clear (like on a zebra crossing).

Pelican crossings are being phased out and replaced by Puffin crossings. Puffin crossings are considered much safer.

You must be sure that when the amber light begins to flash that no pedestrians are going to leap in front of the car. Scan left and right thoroughly while you are waiting.

Other types of crossings

Equestrian (Pegasus) crossings work in a similar way to Toucan crossings. They are for horse riders.

Lollipop officers will appear at school times and are hard to miss with their high visibility gear. Anticipate their actions. Often they will appear at Pelican and Puffin crossings as a secondary measure to safeguard children against dangerous drivers.

lollipop lady

They are also sometimes armed with cameras built into their lollipops to help prosecute idiotic drivers!!

Refuges are built on busy roads to break to road into two halves. refuge This generally makes it easier for those on foot to get across the road. You are not obliged to stop for pedestrians here, and it may actually be dangerous to stop, as the driver behind you may not anticipate your actions. Use your mirrors when thinking about stopping. If there is a large gap behind you then there is little point in stopping anyway, as the foot user will go when you have driven past.

Jaywalking

The practice of recklessly walking into the road at inconsiderate times is known as ‘jaywalking’. Drivers must anticipate jaywalkers. Look at the body language of pedestrians, and if you think they might step out in front of you then warn the driver behind with brake lights, and slow down. In certain circumstances you should consider using the horn to warn the pedestrian of your presence. Generally pedestrians should not cause problems to drivers who concentrate, who are patient, and who prioritise safety over speed.

Pedestrian Crossings

There are four main types of pedestrian crossing.

Zebra
Puffin
Toucan
Pelican

Zebra Crossings

Zebra crossings are called ‘uncontrolled crossings’ because they do not have traffic lights to tell you what to do. You must decide for yourself.

They can be identified by the black and white stripes on the road, and with the belisha beacons situated on either side. The belisha beacons also have flashing globes on top (which are often quite faint in daylight). Zig-zag lines appear as you approach the crossing. You must never park or overtake on the zig-zag lines next to pedestrian crossings.

You MUST give way to pedestrians waiting to cross
If there is an island in the middle of the crossing then treat it as two separate crossings
Check behind as you approach. Warn the driver that you may need to slow by touching the footbrake to show the stop lights
Apply the handbrake after you have stopped to make the car safe while you are waiting for people to cross in front of you

Take special care approaching Zebra crossings at night, as pedestrians are obviously much harder to identify.

Puffin Crossings

Puffin crossings follow the familiar traffic light sequence shown here:

Red means stop
Red and Amber means stop (but be ready)
Green means be careful
Amber means stop (unless you are already past the stop line, or if stopping may cause an accident).

Puffin crossings feature a movement sensor. The traffic light will stay red until everybody has finished crossing the road. Also, if someone presses the yellow box but then decides that they do not want to cross the road, the sensor will notice that they are no longer present and it will not activate the stopping sequence unnecessarily.

As this picture illustrates, the green man sign is also on the same side as the pedestrian, making these types of crossing easier for visually impaired folk.

Approaching Crossings

Your first job is to spot the crossing. Search for the clues: for example, warning signs (what shape are they?)

As with all traffic lights, the hard work should be done when the light is green. Ask yourself:

Is anyone waiting?
Is anyone near the crossing who might get there before me?
What is behind me?
Should I slow down a little?

If you concentrate you should avoid being surprised by traffic lights.