Jaywalking is not "wrong"--it's a problem of cultural expectation. In many countries, streets are significantly safer than in the US, and pedestrians are allowe

Jaywalking is not "wrong"--it's a problem of cultural expectation. In many countries, streets are significantly safer than in the US, and pedestrians are allowed to cross freely at any point. Precisely because it is understood that pedestrians will do this, cars drive more cautiously and defer to the behavior of pedestrians. The street is a shared space, and cars do not have a special privilege to use it over all other transportation means. In the US, however, streets are understood to be owned by cars. Drivers move much faster and without regard for bikes/pedestrians/etc. Even the fact that a pedestrian in the street is called "jaywalking" is an expression of this difference--it's culturally frowned upon, if not actually illegal, for pedestrians to be in the street. So the challenge is: how do you change a culture? There's a better way demonstrated in many other places, but people get very grouchy when you ask them to start acting differently--"It's our way of life!"