Texas City, TX Public Conduct: Jaywalking (2026)
Key Facts
- Intersection crossings
- Must be made within the crosswalk
- Mid-block crossing
- Lawful, but pedestrian yields to vehicles in proximity
- Prohibited conduct
- Causing any vehicle to stop or interfering with movement
- Crossing route
- Right angles to curb or shortest route, § 73.01
- Penalty reference
- § 10.99, fine not exceeding $500 or $2,000
Summary
In Texas City, Texas, § 73.04 requires every pedestrian crossing at an intersection to use the crosswalk. Crossing a street at any place other than an intersection is lawful, but the pedestrian must yield the right-of-way to approaching vehicles and cannot cause any vehicle to stop or interfere with its movement. The code never uses the word jaywalking.
(A) All crossings by any pedestrian of any intersection within the corporate limits of the city shall be made within the crosswalk of the intersection. (B) It shall be lawful for a pedestrian to cross a street at any place other than an intersection; but, when any crossing is made or being made by any pedestrian, he or she shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the street approaching the place of crossing and in proximity thereto. It shall be unlawful for any pedestrian to cause any vehicle to stop or for the pedestrian to cause any interference with the movements of any vehicle by reason of crossing at that place.
Full Breakdown
Chapter 73 of the Texas City Code of Ordinances regulates pedestrians, and § 73.04 is the section that speaks to crossing between intersections.
Division (A) is the crosswalk rule: all crossings by any pedestrian of any intersection within the corporate limits of the city shall be made within the crosswalk of the intersection. It applies everywhere inside the city limits, not only in a downtown or business district.
Division (B) is where the jaywalking question is answered, and the answer is more permissive than the word suggests. It shall be lawful for a pedestrian to cross a street at any place other than an intersection. The condition is yielding. When any crossing is made or being made, the pedestrian shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the street approaching the place of crossing and in proximity thereto. The code then adds a second prohibition: it is unlawful for any pedestrian to cause any vehicle to stop, or to cause any interference with the movements of any vehicle by reason of crossing at that place. A pedestrian who steps out so that a driver has to brake commits the offense the section describes.
Section 73.01 adds a rule about route. No pedestrian shall cross a roadway at any place other than by a route at right angles to the curb or by the shortest route to the opposite curb, except in a crosswalk. A diagonal walk across the roadway is therefore outside the code even where crossing mid-block is otherwise lawful.
Section 73.03 protects pedestrians who are wholly or partially blind and carry a white cane, or a cane white with a red end. Any driver, motor-driven vehicle operator or other pedestrian who approaches or comes in contact with such a person shall yield the right-of-way and take the precautions necessary to avoid accident or injury. Section 73.02 makes it unlawful for anyone other than a wholly or partially blind person to carry or use a white cane, or one white with a red end or bottom, on the public streets.
Sections 73.01 and 73.04 both carry the notation 'Penalty, see § 10.99.'
Violations & Fines
A pedestrian who violates § 73.01 or § 73.04 is prosecuted under the general penalty in § 10.99. That section sets a fine not exceeding $500 in all cases other than ordinances governing fire safety, zoning and public health and sanitation, which carry a fine not exceeding $2,000, and no penalty is greater or less than the state-law penalty for the same or a similar offense. Each day a violation continues is a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is jaywalking illegal in Texas City, Texas?
Do I have to yield when crossing in the middle of the block?
Can I cross the street diagonally?
What are the drivers' duties toward a pedestrian with a white cane?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Texas City
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