Q&A - Stop Signs and Traffic Lights, Which to Obey?

There is a pedestrian controlled crosswalk at Vivian Street crossing 49th Avenue in Vancouver. For vehicle traffic trying to cross or turn there, there is a stop sign. Do I still have to obey the stop sign if I see that a pedestrian has turn the light red (i.e. all traffic on 49th is stopped)? Can I just go straight through?

It seems odd to ignore the stop sign but it seems just as odd for each car that was waiting for the light to change to stop at the intersection when they know it is perfectly safe to cross.

Also, I found the article about not "staying" at a red light when it was not at an intersection. What about pedestrian controlled blinking lights at intersections (49th & Nanaimo)? Do I have to "stay" if the pedestrian has crossed my half of the street, even though the lights are still blinking?

Answer

Here is the intersection described:

One always has to stop for stop signs:

Stopping at intersections

186 Except when a peace officer directs otherwise, if there is a stop sign at an intersection, a driver of a vehicle must stop

(a) at the marked stop line, if any,

(b) before entering the marked crosswalk on the near side of the intersection, or

(c) when there is neither a marked crosswalk nor a stop line, before entering the intersection, at the point nearest the intersecting highway from which the driver has a view of approaching traffic on the intersecting highway.

There is no provision in the Motor Vehicle Act for doing otherwise except for obeying the instructions of a peace officer. They are given the power by section 123 of the Motor Vehicle Act:

Police traffic direction

123 If a peace officer reasonably considers it necessary to

(a) ensure orderly movement of traffic,

(b) prevent injury or damage to persons or property, or

the peace officer may direct traffic according to his or her discretion, despite anything in this Part, and everyone must obey his or her directions.

Drivers are required to obey those directions:

Obeying traffic controls

125 Unless otherwise directed by a peace officer or a person authorized by a peace officer to direct traffic, every driver of a vehicle and every pedestrian must obey the instructions of an applicable traffic control device.

The second part of your inquiry, Nanaimo and 49th:

I have written about yielding to pedestrians in this article which should answer your second question.

Q&A

Signs & Signals