Commitment to zebra crossings allows civilization and laws to be “online” in
many places to promote motor vehicle impoliteness. Local legislation on zebra crossings clarifies penalties.
□ Our reporter Pu Xiaolei
Over 14 hours, 120 snapshots were taken.
After confirmation, a fine of 200 yuan will be imposed and 3 points will be counted.
Recently, the Beijing Municipal Public Security Traffic Management Department has taken the comity zebra crossing as an entry point, focusing on outstanding violations that endanger traffic safety, affect traffic order and the image of civilized traffic, and increase management and remediation efforts.
From 0:00 on August 11, the "electronic police" guarding zebra crossings at 217 intersections formally started law enforcement work. As of 2 o'clock in the afternoon of the same day, a total of 120 cases of motor vehicles being impolite to zebra crossings were illegally captured and recorded.
There is a clear legal basis for rectifying motor vehicle impolite zebra crossings-Article 47 Paragraph 1 of the Road Traffic Safety Law clearly stipulates that when a motor vehicle passes a crosswalk, it should slow down; when a pedestrian is passing a crosswalk, it should stop and give way.
Article 90 stipulates that if a motor vehicle driver violates road traffic safety laws and regulations on road traffic, a warning or a fine of 20 yuan to 200 yuan shall be imposed.
The "fine + scoring" imposed by Beijing for impolite motor vehicles on the zebra crossing is also a punishment method adopted by other places when carrying out this kind of governance work.
With the promotion of relevant departments and localities, courtesy zebra crossings have become the norm in many places.
In recent years, many places have passed legislation to clearly require motor vehicles to be courteous to zebra crossings.
However, in terms of specific punishment methods, local regulations are not consistent.
In April this year, the Road Traffic Safety Law (Revision Proposal Draft) was open for comments.
Some people believe that the road traffic safety law should clearly stipulate that the amount of fines and scoring should be unified.
In this regard, Huang Haibo, director of the Traffic Management and Transportation Legal Professional Committee of the Beijing Lawyers Association, pointed out in an interview with a reporter from the Rule of Law Daily that it is difficult to unify the punishment standards given the inconsistency of economic and transportation development levels across my country.
“It is recommended that localities formulate penalties based on their actual conditions, and implement differentiated management through targeted legislation and amendments to provide a clear basis for law enforcement, better deal with specific traffic violations, and let the law take root.” Huang Haibo Say.
Improve the level of social civilization
The zebra crossing is not only a lifeline to protect pedestrians and reduce the risk of accidents, but also a civilized line that reflects a good image of urban traffic participants.
But in reality, the phenomenon of vehicles and pedestrians robbing lanes does happen from time to time.
The Road Traffic Safety Law, which came into effect on May 1, 2004, has clearly stipulated comity zebra crossings.
However, it took 5 years to bring the zebra crossing from paper to reality.
Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province is the first city to implement a comity zebra crossing.
In 2009, Hangzhou Public Transport vigorously launched a courtesy zebra crossing activity and drove taxis and private cars to do this together.
In this year, the shocking "5·7" traffic accidents and "8·4" traffic accidents occurred in Hangzhou, especially the "5·7" traffic accidents known as the "70 yards" incident. , It has pushed Hangzhou to the forefront of public opinion.
The city of Hangzhou, which has learned from the pain, has accelerated the promotion of the comity zebra crossing.
Hangzhou Public Transport Group formulated the "Guiding Opinions on the Star Rating of Operating Drivers" and "Hangzhou Passenger Transport Taxi Bicycle Evaluation Rules", and the Hangzhou Traffic Police Department has successively launched a number of traffic rectification actions... With the promotion of multiple measures, the comity zebra crossing gradually gains popularity .
"The polite zebra crossing has become the business card of Hangzhou and Zhejiang. At the zebra crossing without traffic lights, vehicles can basically give way to pedestrians," said Kong Shengdong, a bus driver of the Third Automobile Branch of Hangzhou Public Transport Group.
In April 2017, in accordance with the unified deployment of the Ministry of Public Security, various localities vigorously carried out the rectification of impolite zebra crossings; in 2018, the Ministry of Public Security issued the "Guiding Opinions on Further Strengthening the Control of Motor Vehicle Impolite Zebra Crossing" to promote the development of the country. Motor vehicle impolite zebra crossing management, and establish a normal and long-term governance mechanism; Zhejiang, Shaanxi, Beijing and other places have successively implemented the comity zebra crossing operation... With the strong promotion of the Ministry of Public Security and various localities, the comity zebra crossing operation was quickly promoted throughout the country.
"Building a safe and civilized zebra crossing is not only conducive to ensuring road traffic safety, but also conducive to improving the level of social civilization. This is also the purpose of many places to incorporate comity zebra crossings into the road traffic safety law supporting regulations, civilized behavior promotion regulations and other relevant regulations. "Said Liu Junhai, a professor at Renmin University of China Law School.
Different local penalties
In order to establish a normal and long-term governance mechanism, many provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities have clearly enacted legislation on comity zebra crossings.
According to incomplete statistics from reporters, 15 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities have made provisions in the implementation of the Road Traffic Safety Law.
In addition, some provinces, regions, cities, and cities divided into districts have made provisions in the regulations on the promotion of civilized behavior.
The legislation of Shandong Province stipulates that when a motor vehicle passes on a road without traffic signals, it shall avoid pedestrians when they cross the road.
The legislation of Jiangxi Province stipulates that when a motor vehicle passes a crosswalk, it should slow down; when a pedestrian is passing a crosswalk, it should stop and give way.
Regarding motor vehicles' impolite behavior in zebra crossings, various localities have also specified corresponding penalties in their legislation.
However, in the setting of fines, local regulations are not consistent.
Hebei Province’s legislation clarifies that a motor vehicle will be punished with a warning or a fine of 50 yuan for impolite zebra crossings.
The "Tianjin Municipal Civilized Behavior Promotion Regulations" stipulates that those who do not follow the regulations to be comity and avoid pedestrians shall be fined 50 yuan by the public security traffic management department.
Jiangxi Province fines 150 yuan for impolite zebra crossings.
It is worth noting that the method of "scoring + fines" is mostly adopted when dealing with the behavior of improper motor vehicles on zebra crossings.
Beijing City imposed a fine of 200 yuan and 3 points on the offender who was driving a motor vehicle and encountering a pedestrian passing the crosswalk without stopping and giving way.
Hefei City, Anhui Province, when carrying out the special action of "comfortable zebra crossing law-abiding and civilized action", motor vehicle drivers who disrespect the zebra crossing were fined 100 yuan to 200 yuan, with 3 points.
“In transportation, protecting pedestrians and non-motorized vehicles safely and smoothly is the first priority. In particular, pedestrians are at a disadvantage in the public road traffic environment and need more protection. This is also the value orientation passed by legislation.” Beijing Jiaotong University Said Li Weitao, a professor of law school.
Pedestrians should also be involved
After years of hard work, the positive effects of courtesy zebra crossing began to appear.
Taking Zhejiang as an example, data from the Traffic Management Bureau of the Zhejiang Provincial Public Security Department show that the number of deaths from traffic accidents on zebra crossings on urban roads in Zhejiang Province in 2020 decreased by 15.8% compared with 2019, and the number of deaths from traffic accidents on zebra crossings on highways fell by 29.6%. .
At the same time, traffic efficiency has also increased.
Relevant data evaluation shows that after the implementation of zebra crossing management, the peak congestion of commuting days in many cities has decreased, and the peak average vehicle speed has increased slightly.
"In recent years, the comity zebra crossing operation has been implemented in many cities, and the effect has been remarkable. In this regard, it is recommended that places where relevant laws and regulations have not been formulated should improve relevant regulations, and refine management measures based on full consideration of local characteristics. For example, clear and reasonable Punishment standards, and intensify handling of pedestrians' non-compliance with traffic signals, etc." Huang Haibo said.
During a visit in Beijing, the reporter found that in front of a crosswalk with traffic lights, vehicles can basically make a polite zebra crossing, but in front of a crosswalk without traffic signals, some vehicles still do not slow down.
"The purpose of comity zebra crossings is to reduce the speed of motor vehicles to better protect pedestrians' right of way. To achieve this goal, while improving relevant laws and regulations, it is also necessary to use technical means to promote the normal state of motor vehicles impolite zebra crossings. Chemical governance." Li Weitao said.
On the one hand, perfect planning can better solve some outstanding problems. For example, for intersections where right-turning vehicles conflict with straight pedestrians and non-motorized vehicles, special right-turning signals can be used to control; for pedestrians with longer signal intersections, pedestrians can be set up. Second-time crossing signal lights or reasonable extension of the crossing time; for the zebra crossing on the road section with less pedestrian traffic, the pedestrian request-type button signal control can be adopted.
On the other hand, upgrade technical means to supervise illegal activities.
For example, the Beijing Traffic Management Department announced a number of newly-added traffic technology monitoring equipment locations. Among them, the "electronic police" at 217 intersections has been upgraded, which can record traffic violations of motor vehicles "passing pedestrians and failing to stop and give way."
"The comity zebra crossing is to better ensure the safety of pedestrians, and pedestrians should also participate in it. It is recommended that localities explore criticism and education, small fines and other methods when improving relevant laws and regulations, and simultaneously control the illegal behavior of pedestrians running red lights." Liu Junhai said.