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The thing I learned very quickly while living in Boston is that no one will ever stop for you if you let them think they can keep going without running you over
by plorkyeran 3y ago
The thing I learned very quickly while living in Boston is that no one will ever stop for you if you let them think they can keep going without running you over, but drivers do expect pedestrians to just walk into the street and are prepared for it. If you want to cross at a spot without a signal or stop sign, you have to act like you have no idea that there's any cars coming while still keeping an eye on them in case they genuinely didn't see you.
The end result looks like a lot of people have death wishes, but the pedestrian injury rate isn't actually unusually high.
- insanitybit 3y agoBoston or Cambridge? Coming from NYC I was shocked at the fact that cars in Cambridge would constantly yield to me, even in situations where I really didn't expect it. Contrast to NYC where I do follow that exact process you're describing - act oblivious, make yourself look like you really will let them hit you, that way they won't. Although in NYC you gotta be real careful about that strategy...
- FFP999 3y agoI'm talking here about Mass Ave directly adjacent to the bridge--so it's Cambridge but involving drivers coming out of Boston.
- FFP999 3y agoI actually use almost the complete opposite strategy, which is to make eye contact with the driver and stare them down. So far so good.