Conundrum: Pedestrians on a narrow country road with no footpaths - who gives way?

kmb500 wrote: »

It is your right of way, pedestrians should move over, however it is also your responsibility not to run people over so... yes, if they are not moving, you must stop. Highway code explicitly states that if pedestrians are in the road you must slow down and stop before you hit them!

I am a keen photographer, and in early March I was shooting around Buachaille Etive Mor around the main A82. I did what I could to keep off the road as much as I could as I was walking from my car to location and vice versa and thanked drivers that gave me space when I wasn't able to use the verge.

There are many reasons why a pedestrian may use the road rather than a verge. In my case, the verge was very uneven, and walking along it might have caused me to lose balance and fall into the road. There's no guarantee that the drivers would see that. As a driver you don't have the best view of the verge, so how can you judge with certainty whether the pedestrians should be on the verge or the road, facing oncoming traffic?

As a motorist, you have, I believe a moral obligation to look out for and avoid physical contact with weaker road users than yourself - and yes, that includes cyclists. Whether they are in the wrong isn't really the point, you should still look out for them and avoid contact.

Doc_N wrote: »

Sadly, yes - because an increasingly frequent driver response (despite a very clear Highway Code rule) is to shout, swear and gesticulate at any pedestrians who don't get off the road - despite the fact that to do so would be difficult and probably involve getting covered in mud.

Highway Code Rule 206

Drive carefully and slowly when approaching pedestrians on narrow rural roads without a footway or footpath. Always slow down and be prepared to stop if necessary, giving them plenty of room as you drive past.

Unfortunately some ignorant drivers believe they have the right of way however if they have poor ride quality due to over inflated tyres and an "extremely fragile" computer in the boot they will be driving at 20mph giving you ample opportunity to shout and gesticulate back.

Doc_N wrote: »

Outside towns and cities, but often just outside quite well populated villages, there are roads with no footpaths, just not particularly easily accessible verges.

It's a sunny day on a quiet road, with not much traffic. You're driving a car - you spot a couple of pedestrians out for a walk and coming towards you. There are two of them, side by side, on your side of the road, but having seen you they move into single file.

It's a narrow road, just about wide enough for two vehicles, there's another car coming towards you, and you expect the pedestrians to get off the road, onto the verge, to allow you to continue your journey without having to stop. But they don't - they just carry on walking single file.

What do you do?

1 Stop before you reach the pedestrians to allow the other car to pass safely.

2 Blast your horn at the pedestrians to get them to move out of the way.

3 Carry on regardless and take a chance on brushing against the pedestrians?

Real life situation - I see it every day. What's the correct answer?

Out of those three options you really need to ask, unbelievable!