Portland, ME Public Conduct: Jaywalking (2026)

Sec. 28-202, in Chapter 28's Article V, Division 5 (Pedestrians), governs crossing outside a crosswalk: "Every pedestrian crossing a roadway at any point other than within a marked crosswalk, or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection, shall cross at right angles to the curb or by the shortest route to the opposite curb and shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway." Portland's code does not use the word "jaywalking" or ban the crossing outright; instead it shifts the legal right-of-way to drivers and imposes a manner-of-crossing requirement, straight across, by the shortest path, on the pedestrian.

The rule sits alongside Sec. 28-201, which gives pedestrians the right-of-way inside marked and unmarked intersection crosswalks, and Sec. 28-206, which separately bars standing in a street outside a safety zone or crosswalk if it interferes with traffic. Sec. 28-204 layers a due-care duty onto drivers regardless of where a pedestrian crosses, requiring a driver to sound the horn when necessary and use extra caution around children or confused or incapacitated pedestrians.

Division 5 carries no penalty section of its own; Sec. 28-190's article-wide general penalty therefore governs a violation, setting a fine of not less than $55.00 nor more than $275.00, with the same twenty-day written-answer waiver option available for a summons under this article. Because the statute assigns the right-of-way to vehicles rather than criminalizing the crossing itself, enforcement in practice follows collision or near-miss incidents where a pedestrian failed the right-angle, yield-to-traffic standard.