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When must a Texas driver stop for a pedestrian in a crosswalk?

A pedestrian walks across a striped crosswalk in front of a white car stopped before it, while another car approaches from the far side.

You approach a marked crosswalk with no working traffic signal. A pedestrian is crossing on the half of the road you are using. What must you do?

Answer choices

The answer

Stop and yield. Texas law requires a driver to stop for a pedestrian in a crosswalk when no traffic signal is in place or working and the pedestrian is on the driver's half of the road or coming from the other half close enough to be in danger.

The duty applies to any pedestrian in the crosswalk, not only children or people with disabilities. It covers a pedestrian already on your half of the road and one approaching from the opposite half so closely that there would be danger.

The statute also says a driver coming up behind a vehicle that has stopped at a crosswalk for a pedestrian may not pass it. The stopped car may be hiding a person you cannot yet see.

Pedestrians have a duty too: they may not step off a curb into a crosswalk when a vehicle is so close the driver cannot stop.

Exceptions

  • The yield duty in this section applies when no traffic control signal is in place or operating. Where a signal works, the signal and pedestrian-signal rules in the same chapter control instead.
  • A pedestrian who steps into the path of a vehicle too close to stop does not gain the right of way under the section.

Why this rule matters for safety

Crosswalks are where people on foot are most exposed. Not passing a car stopped for a pedestrian keeps you from driving past someone you may not be able to see.

Official sources

Rules checked against these sources on . Laws change. Confirm with the Texas agency before you rely on this for a legal matter.

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