a renegade cop?

On my way home from the station last night, I encountered a crossing with a policing man standing next to it. I dutifully pressed the button and waited.

"You don't have to wait, you know," he said, hands tucked into stab-vest, crossing the street after the only car on the road had passed.
"Oh, er, with you there I didn't want to risk it."
"We still have what's called the Green Cross Code in the country!" he said as he reached the Wetherspoon's.

Given some of his colleagues will nick you for blowing your nose in your car or for not switching off your engine while legally parked and using a handheld phone, I remain unconvinced.

[Fallout]

Pretty sure you can cross the road whenever you like, green man, zebra crossing or not, so long as it's safe to do so. Though what the law would be to tell you off if you stepped in front of a car, I don't know. Reckless endangerment maybe? Hopefully a friendly forum copper will tell us.

Either way, zebra crossings and little green dudes are just there to make the job easier. The day the law tells me I can't wall across the road until I see a little green man is the day I go postal and begin some sort of guy fawkes plot!

We're not Americans you know, we don't have laws against jay walking like the 'land of the free' does. If there's nothing coming you can just walk the crossings there for your benefit and safety not for the car drivers.

Originally Posted by Fallout

begin some sort of guy fawkes plot!

you mean like kidnapping a troop of boy scouts and forcing them to have a firework display?

I figured since I'd had a skinful and he was RIGHT THERE to not try anything.

Theoretically.... He shouldn't advise you either way incase you do have an accident.
This removes them from any liability.

[Geodude]

I got a ticking off for misuse of public funds once for pressing the button on the crossing then changing my mind and not crossing

I cross if it is safe to do so. When I do press the button, sod's law says a gap to cross will open up. I sometimes wait for the green cross light though, as I son't want to cross and THEN the cars get the right light for nothing. I feel guilty lol.

[widepants]

I got busted in Germany once for crossing on the red man.This was at 10 pm with no traffic in sight.
50 euros lighter grrrr

[Sir Trev]

Originally Posted by widepants

I got busted in Germany once for crossing on the red man.This was at 10 pm with no traffic in sight.
50 euros lighter grrrr

I was actually stopped from crossing an empty road in Slovakia once by fellow pedestrians who were just waiting like sheep. What a waste of time!!

Germans blindly following orders! Don't they know that sort of behaviour leads to trouble?