When I first moved from the UK to the USA, I assumed that "jaywalking" was a made-up thing that you warned tourists about, like https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drop_bear. How could crossing the road be _inherently_ illegal, even if done in a safe manner!?
Walking is just an afterthought really, until you get into certain areas like South Beach in Miami.
It’s also not illegal to cross a dual carriage way in the UK on foot afaik. Motorways are but not at A road.
This is true on average, but not a justification for jay-walking being a crime on roads which _are_ safe to cross.
I would and do, and I appreciate the law being on my side when I do.
* disregarded any safety measure (arrogant crossing red light while cars are present)
* were crossing red light in front of a Police station
That's no longer a U-turn
Perhaps the phrase “perfectly safe” is wrong. Maybe “otherwise intrinsically safe” would be more accurate. Having said all that, I do wonder if we have U-turn accident statistics.
Because I'm saying that the act of crossing the road _itself_ should not be illegal - merely the act of crossing it unsafely. By definition, this is not disruptive to traffic flow.
> why pedestrians should not be expected to follow traffic laws
They should. This is begging the question - I'm saying that the law itself is flawed, not that a law should exist and be flouted.
> why the law should allow pedestrians to step into traffic whenever and wherever they want
This is a strawman. Pedestrians should be allowed to step into _roads_ (not into traffic) whenever and wherever it is safe to do so.