There has been a long standing battle over who owns the roadways: pedestrians or motorists. On the one hand, motorists feel as if they are entitled to take up most of the space on roadways because they are, by default, the bigger of the two. However, many pedestrians also (wrongly) feel that they are entitled to cross the street wherever they want whenever they want and that motorists have to stop for them.

Both pedestrians and motorists are wrong on these two counts. On the one hand, pedestrians always have the right of way when they are being pitted against motorists. However, pedestrians should also be aware of the rules that govern where they should walk as well as when and where it is safe to cross the road. After all, there is a reason why cross walks were created! What do you think would happen if every single pedestrian who was walking along the sidewalk decided to all of a sudden, randomly cross the street wherever they wanted? The immediate result would be that motorists would no doubt become confused, anxious and possibly angered. Traffic jams would build up and everyone would point the finger at the other person involved.

In New York City, where pedestrians cross the street is taken very seriously. In a city that houses so many people, it is important that pedestrians follow the rules that have been laid out for them. For example, pedestrians will often receive a citation in places such as New York City if they are caught 'jaywalking'. Jaywalking is when a person crosses a busy road at a point or in an area that is not designated for pedestrian use by a cross walk. For the most part, however, you can usually see pedestrians in New York City following the rules, which is why you will find masses of people crossing the street at cross walks.

Another issue that tends to come up when speaking about pedestrians and motorists sharing the roadways is that of using a bicycle. On Long Island, there are designated bicycle lanes for those who wish to get around town on their bicycles. In other parts of the United States (or rather, most parts), there are no designated bicycle lanes and so cyclists must make sure that they are as close to the right side of the road as possible. Similar to driving a vehicle, cyclists mus ride with the flow of traffic, always maintaining a safe distance between them and the cars that often rush by them on the side of the road. It is also important that if you are planning on riding a bicycle as a secondary means of transportation, familiarize yourself with the hand signals that cyclists are required to use when riding with traffic. If you are not a serious cyclists and are just taking your bicycle out to go for a leisurely ride, it should be alright to ride on the sidewalk. However, check with your local officials before you decide to take your bike out for a spin.