Just cross the damn road...Is Poland strict about road crossing rules?

Walking home last night, around 10 pm. A few poles ( I discovered this when I eventually reached as far as them) are standing at the traffic lights waiting to cross. At this crossing you could spot on coming cars from up to half a kilometer.

30 secs later I get as far as them and they are still standing there. The road is dead so I cross. I turn find them still standing there and only when the green man showed did they actually cross. Not a car in sight (k, maybe one or two). I have noticed this before, I almost feel like I'm taking my life in to my hands when crossing now.

Are they very strict about this in poland???

No, we are not very strict about this in Poland, though police may fine you if they see you crossing at red.
Maybe we are more obedient abroad?

I think it is more the matter of safety...

Becouse we are not doing it in Poland (crossing the road at red light) the drivers are not used to people doing like that so when they have green light they just behave as there was no crossing at all...

My collegue's friend from France was nearly hit by car in Warsaw becouse she entered the road at red light thinking that the uncomming driver would slow down (the car was quite away) but the driver just didn't spot her at all and continiued with the same speed and passed just behid her back...

Lukasz

I've noticed that too. It's a bit like the Smith and Jones sketch where the guy looks left and right about a hundred times before deciding to drive forward past the junction, only to have a car drop from the sky and crush his car :)

I crossed today and got the weirdest of looks.

My mate got done for jay walking in Dublin once, years ago.
But if you'd've seen him you'd probably have done the same ;)

[hr]

I find generally in north Europe people are more, serious, orderly and introverted.
(remember I am saying this in very general terms but it is something of note in my opinion).

It's in countries like Germany where they're really serious about waiting for the green light to walk across the road. Even their most serious anarchists wait. In Poland, I had noticed an unwritten code - some crossings can be pretty much ignored, others must be taken seriously. The roads aren't always particularly safe in Poland, but I assume that tends to be main roads, rural roads predominantly.

In Scotland, we put our hand up to make a stop signal and just waltz on across ;)

this is pretty much how it is in my neck of the woods.

So in the UK, drivers are northern Europeans and pedestrians are southern Europeans.
In Poland, the drivers are southern Europeans and the pedestrians are northern Europeans.
Or something like that.

God, I used to do that all the time...I wouldn't risk it here, not a chance!

Careful now!
Im pretty sure our European neighbors can have ze gut time with thee rock and/or roll, getting down with ze dolly partons and ze likes!

But I'd have to agree with you there ted.

In Poland the best place to get killed is on a zebra crossing. If one driver stops the others are so busy looking at him they don't see the pedestrian and drive straight across the crossing.

Drivers generally don't stop so pedestrians are often wary of crossing. Sometimes I've seen the whole street stopped and the old biddy waves the car on!

Also the zebras are often placed as close to a junction as possible so drivers have to watching several things at once and don't stop.

in poland, police is not your friend, remember it.
it never was, and it's not now, maybe in future.
you shouldnt give them any reasons to fine you.