Texas Transportation Code chapter 552: pedestrian right-of-way and crosswalk laws

The short answer

Where no traffic control signal is in place or in operation, Texas Transportation Code §552.003(a) says "The operator of a vehicle shall stop and yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian crossing a roadway in a crosswalk" if the pedestrian is on the driver's half of the roadway or approaching so closely from the opposite half as to be in danger (Transp. Code §552.003). At a "Walk" signal, drivers must stop and yield (§552.002). A pedestrian crossing outside a crosswalk must yield to vehicles (§552.005), and whatever the other rules say, a driver "shall exercise due care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian on a roadway" (§552.008).

This entry provides general informational guidance and is not legal advice.

Key facts (as of October 29, 2026)

• Crosswalks without a working signal. Drivers stop and yield to a pedestrian in the crosswalk on their half of the road, or close enough on the other half to be in danger (§552.003(a)).
• "Walk" signals. A pedestrian facing "Walk" may cross, and drivers must stop and yield (§552.002(b)).
• Crossing elsewhere. Outside a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection, the pedestrian yields to vehicles (§552.005(a)).
• Due care. Drivers must exercise due care to avoid hitting a pedestrian, sound the horn when necessary, and take proper precaution around a child or an obviously confused or incapacitated person (§552.008).
• A crosswalk offense. Causing bodily injury to a pedestrian or other listed road user with criminal negligence within the area of a crosswalk is a Class A misdemeanor, or a state jail felony for serious bodily injury (§545.428).
• On the crash report. Codes 36 and 59 in list 38 record failures to yield between drivers and pedestrians (CR-3CS).
• Amended in 2025. The history lines for §§552.001 and 552.002 list Acts 2025, 89th Leg., R.S., ch. 207 (S.B. 2039) as their most recent amendment; it extended several of these rules to "sidewalk users" and added §§552.0035 and 552.0036 for sidewalk users at crosswalks and stop signs.

What does chapter 552 say?

The official text of three core sections, as published by the Texas Legislature. Section 552.003(a)-(c):

Sec. 552.003. PEDESTRIAN RIGHT-OF-WAY AT CROSSWALK. (a) The operator of a vehicle shall stop and yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian crossing a roadway in a crosswalk if:

(1) no traffic control signal is in place or in operation; and

(2) the pedestrian is:

(A) on the half of the roadway in which the vehicle is traveling; or

(B) approaching so closely from the opposite half of the roadway as to be in danger.

(b) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), a pedestrian may not suddenly leave a curb or other place of safety and proceed into a crosswalk in the path of a vehicle so close that it is impossible for the vehicle operator to stop and yield.

(c) The operator of a vehicle approaching from the rear of a vehicle that is stopped at a crosswalk to permit a pedestrian to cross a roadway may not pass the stopped vehicle.

Section 552.005:

Sec. 552.005. CROSSING AT POINT OTHER THAN CROSSWALK. (a) A pedestrian shall yield the right-of-way to a vehicle on the highway if crossing a roadway at a place:

(1) other than in a marked crosswalk or in an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection; or

(2) where a pedestrian tunnel or overhead pedestrian crossing has been provided.

(b) Between adjacent intersections at which traffic control signals are in operation, a pedestrian may cross only in a marked crosswalk.

(c) A pedestrian may cross a roadway intersection diagonally only if and in the manner authorized by a traffic control device.

Section 552.008:

Sec. 552.008. DRIVERS TO EXERCISE DUE CARE. Notwithstanding another provision of this chapter, the operator of a vehicle shall:

(1) exercise due care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian on a roadway;

(2) give warning by sounding the horn when necessary; and

(3) exercise proper precaution on observing a child or an obviously confused or incapacitated person on a roadway.

Source: Tex. Transp. Code ch. 552, statutes.capitol.texas.gov. Text last checked October 29, 2026.

What does it mean in plain language?

• Who is a pedestrian. The Code defines a "pedestrian" as "a person on foot". A "sidewalk user" is an individual lawfully operating a bicycle, motor-assisted scooter, electric personal assistive mobility device, skateboard, roller skates or a similar device on a sidewalk (§541.001).
• A crosswalk does not need paint. A crosswalk is either the part of a roadway "designated as a pedestrian crossing by surface markings, including lines", or "the portion of a roadway at an intersection that is within the connections of the lateral lines of the sidewalks on opposite sides of the highway measured from the curbs or, in the absence of curbs, from the edges of the traversable roadway" (§541.302(2)).
• Signals first. A pedestrian or sidewalk user facing a green signal may cross within a marked or unmarked crosswalk "unless the sole green signal is a turn arrow", and one facing a steady red or steady yellow signal alone may not enter the roadway (§552.001). Where a pedestrian signal is present, "Walk" means drivers stop and yield; a pedestrian may not start across on "Don't Walk" or "Wait", and one already partly across must continue to a sidewalk or safety island (§552.002).
• No signal working. Section 552.003(a) applies where no traffic control signal is in place or in operation. It protects a pedestrian on the driver's half of the road, or one approaching so closely from the other half as to be in danger.
• Sidewalk users at crosswalks (2025). Section 552.0035, added in 2025, says the operator of a vehicle shall stop and yield the right-of-way to a sidewalk user crossing a roadway in a crosswalk on the same conditions §552.003(a) sets for a pedestrian. It also says a sidewalk user may not suddenly leave a curb or other place of safety into the path of a vehicle too close to stop, and may not approach or enter a crosswalk "at a speed greater than is reasonable and prudent under the existing conditions"; a speed greater than eight miles per hour is prima facie evidence that the speed is not reasonable and prudent (§552.0035). Under §552.0036, a sidewalk user approaching an intersection with a stop sign must stop before entering the crosswalk and then yield to a vehicle that has entered the intersection or is approaching so closely as to be an immediate hazard (§552.0036).
• Duties run both ways. A pedestrian may not dart from the curb into the path of a vehicle too close to stop (§552.003(b)), and must yield when crossing outside a crosswalk (§552.005). A driver behind a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk for a pedestrian may not pass it (§552.003(c)).
• Sidewalks and driveways. A pedestrian may not walk along and on a roadway if an adjacent sidewalk is provided and accessible; where there is none, a pedestrian walking along a highway walks on the left side or shoulder facing oncoming traffic, unless that side is obstructed or unsafe. A driver emerging from or entering an alley, building, or private road or driveway "shall stop and yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian approaching on a sidewalk" crossing it (§552.006).
• Blind pedestrians. A driver approaching an intersection or crosswalk where a pedestrian guided by an assistance animal or carrying a white cane is crossing "shall take necessary precautions to avoid injuring or endangering the pedestrian", and must come to a full stop if that is the only way to avoid injury or danger (§552.010(b)).
• Penalties for some collisions. If it is shown at trial that a violation of §552.003(a) resulted in a collision causing serious bodily injury or death to a visually impaired or disabled person, or that a violation of §552.010 resulted in one causing serious bodily injury or death to a blind person, the offense is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine and 30 hours of community service to an organization or agency that primarily serves visually impaired or disabled persons (§552.003(d), §552.010(c)).

What is the crosswalk collision offense?

Section 545.428, added in 2021, makes certain crosswalk collisions a crime:

(b) A person commits an offense if the person with criminal negligence:

(1) operates a motor vehicle within the area of a crosswalk; and

(2) causes bodily injury to a pedestrian or a person operating a bicycle, motor-assisted scooter, electronic personal assistive mobility device, neighborhood electric vehicle, or golf cart.

(c) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor, except that the offense is a state jail felony if the person described by Subsection (b)(2) suffered serious bodily injury.

Under §545.428(d), it is an affirmative defense that, at the time, the injured person "was violating a provision of this subtitle relating to walking, movement, or operation in a crosswalk or on a roadway" (§545.428).

How does a crash report record a pedestrian crash?

• The pedestrian is a unit. The code sheet lists unit description 4 as "Pedestrian" (CR-3CS, 4/1/2023).
• Two yield codes. In list 38, code 36 is "Failed to Yield ROW - To Pedestrian" and code 59 is "Pedestrian FTYROW to Vehicle" (pedestrian failed to yield right-of-way to vehicle).
• How TxDOT defines them. TxDOT's CR-100 instructions describe code 36 as "When a vehicle fails to yield R.O.W. to a pedestrian legally on the highway and the action contributes to the crash", listing "Texas Transportation Code: Section 544.007, 552.001, 552.002, 552.003(a, c), 552.006(c), 552.008, and 552.010", and code 59 as when "a pedestrian, fails to yield to vehicular traffic and the action contributes to the crash", listing "Section 552.003, 552.004, and 552.005" (CR-100).
• An opinion, not a charge. The contributing factors on a CR-3 are the investigating officer's opinion. The guide to reading a Texas crash report explains the other fields and code lists.
• Civil claims are separate. Chapter 552 does not say whether or how a violation matters in a civil injury claim; Texas's rules on dividing responsibility among the people involved are in chapter 33 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code, which the §33.001 entry quotes. The right-of-way rules between vehicles are in the §545.151 entry.

What applies in Houston and Harris County?

• Statewide rules. Chapter 552 and §545.428 apply on Houston and Harris County streets as everywhere in Texas.
• Local ordinances. "A local authority may by ordinance: (1) require pedestrians to comply strictly with the directions of an official traffic control signal; and (2) prohibit pedestrians from crossing a roadway in a business district or a designated highway except in a crosswalk" (§552.009). This entry does not state any City of Houston pedestrian ordinance, because none was verified on an official source.
• Where crashes happen. The City of Houston's Vision Zero program publishes a High Injury Network map (City of Houston, Vision Zero). The Houston pedestrian accidents guide and the study of Houston intersections with the most serious crashes use local crash data.

When was this checked, and can it change?

The text above was last checked on October 29, 2026, against the official text published by the Texas Legislature, and the TxDOT code sheet and instructions and the Vision Zero page were read the same day. The Legislature can amend a statute in any session; it amended chapter 552 in 2021, 2023 and 2025. It convenes in regular session on the second Tuesday in January of each odd-numbered year (Gov't Code §301.001), so the next regular session begins on January 12, 2027. This entry is scheduled to be rechecked against the official text by April 2027 and again after the 2027 regular session ends.

Related guides

• Pedestrian accidents in Houston
• Bicycle accidents in Houston
• Right-of-way at intersections: the §545.151 entry
• Houston intersections with the most serious crashes
• How to read a Texas crash report (CR-3)
• Proportionate responsibility: the §33.001 entry
• Texas car crash law reference: all entries
• Car accident information for Houston

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