A 3-minute lesson from the South Dakota course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.
Everybody has a right to the road. Pedestrians are hard to see and their intentions are hard to read, so be ready to yield to them almost everywhere, marked crosswalk or not.
Yielding to pedestrians:
Always be prepared to yield, even if they're not in a crosswalk
Yield to pedestrians crossing at intersections, even when the crosswalk isn't marked
Yield to all pedestrians in the intersection, even if your light is green
When turning right or left on red, be prepared to yield to pedestrians
In playground and residential areas, where children can run out between parked cars, it's a good idea to drive slower than the limit and be ready to stop quickly.
In a school zone, obey the slower speed limit when lights are flashing or children are present. At a school crossing with a traffic patrol, stop and yield if signaled.
School speed limit when flashingMid-block crosswalk sign: state law, yield to pedestrians
Put it into practice
Your light is green, but an elderly pedestrian is still finishing crossing in front of you. Wait: you must yield to pedestrians in the intersection even on a green light.
Check your understanding
Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.
When must you yield to pedestrians crossing at an intersection?
Only when a crossing guard is present
Only during school hours
Only when the crosswalk is clearly painted
Even when the crosswalk is not marked
Answer: Even when the crosswalk is not marked
You must yield to pedestrians crossing at intersections, even when a crosswalk is not marked.
