Evanston, IL Public Conduct: Jaywalking (2026)

Evanston's pedestrian-crossing rules sit in Title 10, Chapter 7 of the City Code, titled Pedestrians. Section 10-7-1, Crossing at Right Angles, requires that except where a crosswalk or other official traffic-control device indicates otherwise, a pedestrian cross a roadway at right angles to the curb or by the shortest route to the opposite curb, the baseline rule for any midblock crossing. Section 10-7-2, Prohibited Crossing, goes further in two specific settings: no pedestrian can cross a roadway outside a crosswalk in any business district, and no pedestrian can cross outside a crosswalk on any through street marked with a crosswalk.

Together, the two sections mean crossing outside a crosswalk is flatly prohibited downtown and on marked through streets, while a right-angle midblock crossing is permitted elsewhere so long as it is not made at an angle. Neither Section 10-7-1 nor Section 10-7-2 sets its own fine, so the citywide default in Section 1-4-1, General Penalty, controls: a fine of not less than $20 and not more than $750 for each offense, with each day of a continuing violation counted as a separate offense. Citations issued under this chapter are code violation citations adjudicated by the City's Division of Administrative Adjudication under Title 11, not by the criminal courts, per Sections 1-4-2 and 1-4-3.

A respondent found in default for missing a hearing or failing to pay can be ordered to pay the citation's maximum fine plus administrative costs, and any default judgment can be appealed to the Circuit Court of Cook County within thirty-five days of entry, after which the fine becomes a final debt owed to the City. Section 10-7-4 separately requires every driver to exercise due care around pedestrians and sound a horn when necessary, underscoring that the crossing rules operate alongside, not instead of, a driver's own duty of care.