Hey Portland Drivers, Just ‘Cause it’s Made of Brick Doesn’t Mean it’s Not a Crosswalk

We’re all aware of what a crosswalk is. When you look at a road and you see white stripes painted across it, we know that’s for pedestrians to shuffle across.

What do we do when we see a person waiting to cross it? We slow our cars down, come to a complete stop, and let them walk across. Whether it’s common sense or you learned it in driver’s ed, that’s just the way it goes.

There’s no questioning it.

But what about bricks? When you see bricks laid down across the road, do you have the common knowledge that that is a crosswalk or do you just blow right by it thinking it’s just road décor?

Apparently to Portland drivers, it’s merely road décor. Pedestrians needing to cross? Screw ‘em!

Crosswalks, yes they are crosswalks, like these ones are scattered around the Old Port. Believe it or not, they are there for when a human being needs to walk from one side of the road to the other without getting hit by a motor vehicle.

Weird concept, right?

I feel as adults I shouldn’t have to put out a PSA that this thing in the road is a crosswalk but here I am because I have never, not once in my decades of living in these streets, have seen a car stop to let someone go across the brick.

White lines? Cars stop. Brick? Cars are CONFUSED.

I’m here to clear the confusion: Just because it’s brick, does not mean it’s not a crosswalk!!!