Pedestrians staring at their phones while crossing the road could risk being fined €75 or more under Italy’s proposed new highway regulations.
The country has decided to tackle the problem created by the fact that, as our phones have become appendages of our bodies and our attention has shifted from the world around us to our screens, a momentary lack of attention on the road can now have deadly consequences.
While pedestrians have traditionally been considered the most vulnerable road users, with drivers bearing most of the responsibility in the event of an accident, the new rules recognise that this isn’t always fair. A driver cannot be blamed when a distracted pedestrian, unaware of the traffic around them, suddenly steps into the road, leaving the driver no time to react.
The proposed legislation follows a series of Italian court rulings in which pedestrians were found to be at fault due to their own inattention, whether they were looking at a phone, a tablet, a laptop or a camera.
The new code would not ban phone use outright. It would simply require pedestrians to be aware of their surroundings when entering or crossing a road.
Earphones would still be permitted, provided they do not drown out traffic noise and pedestrians remain aware of and able to hear what is happening around them.
This, of course, raises the question of whether, following that same logic, electric cars and bikes should have their volume adjusted too.
@intriestemagazine The neighboring region of Veneto, however, is rolling out an experiment designed to educate phone-glued pedestrians. The city of Padova recently installed a brand-new anti-smartphone warning system at a particularly busy local crosswalk, alerting distracted walkers of oncoming traffic. It’s reportedly the first of its kind in the world. We wandered downtown Trieste to see what our city’s dwellers thought about the idea.
♬ original sound – intriestemagazine
The proposed rules, which seem logical and basic, require pedestrians to ensure they have made eye contact with the driver of an approaching vehicle and that the driver intends to stop, whether they are crossing at a designated crossing or not. Pedestrians should avoid dawdling once they have started crossing, so no selfies in the middle of the crossing.
Hands-free calls would, however, remain allowed, as would emergency calls.
The new rule would apply only where vehicles are involved. Pedestrians simply walking on pavements would not be affected.
Italy is not the first place to try to tackle this problem. In 2017, Honolulu became one of the first cities in the world to introduce fines for pedestrians using electronic devices while crossing the road. Lithuania followed a year later with similar legislation. In contrast, Japan took a softer approach in Yamato City, Kanagawa, where its 2020 ban on walking while using a phone was not paired with any fines.
The proposed changes in Italy are part of a much wider overhaul of the country’s highway code, which is currently being drawn up by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport. Under the proposed legislation, motorists will face tougher rules.
Using a mobile phone while driving is already illegal in Italy, with first-time offenders facing fines of up to €1,000. Under the proposed code, repeat offenders could face fines of up to €2,588 and have their licence suspended for between one and three months.
Initially, restrictions had been proposed for drivers aged 85 and over, limiting them to driving within a radius of 100 km from their homes and banning them completely from motorways. However, these proposals have been dropped following an outcry, at the request of Transport Minister Matteo Salvini, who has called for more thorough medical checks for older drivers instead.
The new code is still being finalised. A definitive text is expected by mid-October.
