On his way to get bubble tea on Grand River Avenue, Anthony Manzano crossed in middle of East Circle Drive Tuesday afternoon.
Although no marked crosswalk exists, there also were almost no cars in the road at the time Manzano crossed.
"It's faster," the premedical freshman said of not using a crosswalk.
MSU's ordinances on pedestrians, last updated in 1994, allow for pedestrians like Manzano to cross the street without a crosswalk, as long as there is no traffic.
However, in the winter weather, drivers and pedestrians need to be more cautious, MSU police Deputy Chief Mike Rice said.
MSU Ordinance 32, concerning pedestrian traffic, outlines the specifics of the rights and duties of pedestrians on campus.
The ordinance states that when a pedestrian enters a crosswalk on the driver's side of the road in enough time to allow a vehicle to yield and there is no traffic signal, the vehicle has to yield.
However, if the pedestrian is not on the vehicle's side of the road and a vehicle is coming, the pedestrian must yield to the vehicle.
When political science senior Mark Tornga walked from Olin Health Center to McDonel Hall Tuesday afternoon, he waited for traffic to clear the roads before crossing. He said both motorists and pedestrians on campus can cause traffic problems.
"This is a college campus, so there should be more expectations that people will be walking to class," Tornga said. "Anyone can walk. Motorists have a bigger responsibility, especially on a college campus."
To increase traffic safety on campus, the MSU Department of Police and Public Safety did an analysis several years ago of the accident rates on campus between cars and cars, pedestrians and cars, and bikes and cars, Rice said.
"MSU has such a large pedestrian load; it's much like a big city," he said.
The analysis revealed the five worst accident intersections on campus, and the department worked to cut the vehicle to vehicle and vehicle to pedestrian accident rates significantly, Rice said.
The worst intersections included Shaw Lane and Bogue Street, Shaw Lane and Red Cedar Road, Shaw Lane and Chestnut Road, Farm Lane and Auditorium Road and Farm Lane and Wilson Road.
There are about 175 marked crosswalks on campus, Rice said.
The department marked many of the crosswalks with bright yellow reminder signs, and put "yield to pedestrian" signs in the middle of crosswalks. These efforts in recent years have paid off with a decrease in the number of accidents at the crosswalks, Rice said.
"Even one is too high, but it is very low considering the volume of vehicles and pedestrians," he said.
Rice advises people who are commuting on campus to pay attention and be patient when traffic is at peak times.
"Sometimes, the driving is inappropriate for the circumstances, with a very high pedestrian and vehicle load," he said.
