Basically believed by some to be the unofficial sport of Santa Cruz.

Along Capitola Road, jaywalking is enough of a problem to have reminders painted on the curbs.

The vehicle codes governing jaywalking in the state of California read as follows:

JAYWALKING, etc. (from the California Vehicle Code) 21954 VC Every pedestrain upon a roadway...other than within a marked crosswalk or...an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection, shall yield the right of way to all vehicles...so near as to constitue an immediate hazard (the provisions of this section shall not relieve the driver of a vehicle from the duty to exercise due care for the safety of any pedestrian upon a roadway)....21955 VC Between adjacent intersections controlled by traffic control signal devices or by police officers, pedestrians shall not cross the roadway at any place except in a crosswalk (a stop sign is not a traffic control signal device; any intersecting road or alleyway not so controlled negates this provision and allows you to cross anywhere where you're not a traffic hazard).

The term "jaywalking" may come from calling a rural person a "jay" because they were so unfamiliar with the city customs of watching where they walk, they moved about like a jay bird.

References

• http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d11/vc21954.htm
• http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d11/vc21955.htm

Related Links

• City Ordinances
• Santa Cruz Police Department

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