Jaywalking in California: History, Pedestrian Safety Trends, Law Enforcement Patterns, and Decriminalization Legislation

This report investigates jaywalking laws in connection with traffic safety, racial equity, and street design, focusing on California. It traces the concept of "jaywalking" to an early 20th-century auto industry campaign to shift safety responsibility from drivers to pedestrians. By analyzing national and California pedestrian injury and fatality data (2009–2022) alongside California Racial and Identity Profiling Act (RIPA) police stop data (2018–2022), the study describes demographic disparities in both pedestrian crashes and law enforcement of jaywalking. It also documents recent legislative efforts in California and other states and cities to decriminalize or reform jaywalking enforcement. Findings show that pedestrian fatalities reached a 40 year high in 2022, with California’s rates consistently exceeding the national average. Significant racial and economic disparities exist: Black pedestrians experience fatality rates multiple times those of White pedestrians, and lower-income neighborhoods suffer disproportionately. RIPA data further reveal that jaywalking-related police stops disproportionately affect Black pedestrians. These disparities are likely driven by the built environment—such as wide arterials and sparse crosswalks—which incentivizes mid-block crossings, particularly in under-invested communities. The report also examines California’s Assembly Bill (AB) 2147 (2022), which partially decriminalized jaywalking by limiting enforcement to cases of "immediate hazard." It concludes by recommending continued monitoring of enforcement and safety data to track AB 2147’s impact, alongside collecting built environment data to better contextualize racial and economic disparities in pedestrian outcomes.