crs1026
Senior Member
It's actually not a beg button. Pedestrians always have right of way as per the sign, the flashing lights are just a tool they can use in an attempt to get drivers to obey the law.
Which illustrates another issue with the actuated lights, that some people think that pedestrians need to press the button in order to receive priority.
A long time ago - as kids, we were taught that one had to "point" when standing at a crossover to signal an intent to cross.
The beg buttons are not all bad, as it can be utterly ambiguous whether a pedestrian standing at a crossover actually intends to cross, or is waiting, or even looking at their phone.
Of course, once the pedestrian does begin to cross, they have the legal right of way.... but there are risks in taking that for granted.
- Paul
(Check out the last sentence in the caption)