Crossing The Road
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 304.291 — Walk and Don't Walk, and the model ordinance's crosswalk rules where a city adopts them
Walk and Don't Walk. In Missouri, where special pedestrian-control signals showing Walk or Don't Walk are in place, a pedestrian facing Walk may proceed across the roadway in the direction of the signal and is given the right-of-way by the drivers of all vehicles. On Don't Walk, no pedestrian starts to cross, and one who has partly crossed on Walk proceeds to a sidewalk or safety island.
A white cane or a guide dog. The driver of a vehicle approaching a person with a visual, aural or physical disability who carries a cane predominantly white or metallic in color, with or without a red tip, or uses a guide dog, hearing dog or service dog yields to that pedestrian, and a driver who fails to is liable in damages for any injury caused to the pedestrian or the dog.
The model ordinance. The rest of these rules are in chapter 300, the model traffic ordinance, which, or any part of which, becomes effective in a city when the city's legislative body adopts it by ordinance.
| Where the crossing is | Who yields |
|---|---|
| Where the crossing isIn a crosswalk, with traffic control signals not in place or not working | Who yieldsThe driver, slowing or stopping if need be, when the pedestrian is on the driver's half of the roadway or approaching so closely from the other half as to be in danger |
| Where the crossing isAnywhere other than a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection | Who yieldsThe pedestrian |
| Where the crossing isWhere a pedestrian tunnel or overhead crossing has been provided | Who yieldsThe pedestrian |
- No pedestrian suddenly leaves a curb or other place of safety and walks or runs into the path of a vehicle so close that it is impossible for the driver to yield.
- When a vehicle is stopped at a crosswalk to let a pedestrian cross, the driver of another vehicle approaching from the rear does not overtake and pass it.
- Between adjacent intersections where traffic control signals are in operation, and anywhere in a business district, pedestrians cross only in a crosswalk.
- No pedestrian crosses an intersection diagonally unless official traffic control devices authorize it.
- Where sidewalks are provided, pedestrians do not walk along the adjacent roadway. Where they are not, a pedestrian walking along a highway walks, when practicable, on the left side, facing oncoming traffic.
Whether a particular city has adopted the model ordinance, or rules of its own, is not on this page, and neither are the penalties. Who was at fault in a particular collision, and what a particular ticket means, are questions for a licensed Missouri attorney.
Sources for this section (7)
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 304.291 — Rules for pedestrians controlled by special signs
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 304.080 — Handicapped persons with white cane or dog, driver to take all necessary precautions — cane or dog not required to enforce rights, when
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 300.600 — Cities may adopt ordinance by reference
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 300.375 — Pedestrians' right-of-way in crosswalks
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 300.390 — When pedestrian shall yield
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 300.395 — Prohibited crossing
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 300.405 — Pedestrians walking along roadways
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Missouri attorney.