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In Columbia, the Borough’s U-turn restriction and Pennsylvania’s pedestrian right-of-way rules both apply. Here is what the official text says and what it means in everyday traffic.
Columbia Borough Code § 207-46
U-turns on two-way streets are restricted.
“No U-turns shall be made on any two-way street in the Borough of Columbia unless they can be made back of the intersection…”
The Borough provision also refers to the times and places indicated by official signs. Its phrase “back of the intersection” is not defined in the section, so this page does not pretend that every U-turn has the same legal answer.
Obey every posted turn restriction.
Do not make a U-turn that cannot be completed safely or that interferes with traffic.
State law also bars turning around on a curve or near a hill crest when an approaching driver cannot see the vehicle within 500 feet.
“Yield” gives the crossing pedestrian the right-of-way.
“The driver of a vehicle shall yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian crossing the roadway within any marked crosswalk…”
When no traffic signal is present or operating, a driver must yield to a pedestrian crossing in a marked crosswalk or in an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection. Slow or stop as needed to let that person cross safely.
A pedestrian may not suddenly enter the path of a dangerously close vehicle.
A driver may not pass a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk to let a pedestrian cross.
At a working signal, drivers and pedestrians follow the signal; turning drivers must still yield to pedestrians lawfully in an adjacent crosswalk.
What about someone waiting at the curb? PennDOT explains that § 3542’s crossing duty begins when the pedestrian starts into the crosswalk. Someone only standing on the sidewalk has not yet begun crossing. That is not permission to crowd, intimidate, or endanger a person preparing to cross.
Plain-language summary, not legal advice. The official text controls. Sources last checked .
A ColumbiaWalks editorial
Call us out. We didn’t know—and ignorance is no longer an excuse.
ColumbiaWalks should have made these rules easier to find and understand sooner. We did not. That failure does not change the law or the danger created when road users do not know what the rules require.
Without clear education, safe street design, and consistent enforcement, laws risk being treated like suggestions. They were enacted as laws. Columbia’s residents deserve to know how Borough leaders will make those rules visible, understandable, and meaningful on our streets.
Ask for specifics: public education, appropriate signs and street design, fair enforcement, a clear way to report recurring locations, and public measures of whether conditions improve.
ColumbiaWalks in the news
Front-page coverage · The Columbia Chronicle
Pedestrian safety takes center stage at Borough Council.
Following ColumbiaWalks developer Robert Thompson’s August 11 address to Columbia Borough Council, The Columbia Chronicle reported on the community’s urgent call for safer streets. The coverage highlights requests for a comprehensive pedestrian-safety plan, stronger crosswalk enforcement, infrastructure review, and a full examination of pedestrian incidents and complaints.
Independent reporting by The Columbia Chronicle. The article opens on the newspaper’s website.
Local television coverage · WGAL News 8
Columbia residents call for action after deadly crash.
WGAL's August 13 report connects the deaths of Eric and Donna Lutz at Third and Chestnut streets with residents' longstanding concerns about speeding, unsafe crossings, and the need for visible enforcement. The coverage also examines practical ideas raised by neighbors, including improved markings, additional signs, pedestrian-activated flashing beacons, and targeted monitoring at dangerous intersections.
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