Waynesville, MO Public Conduct: Jaywalking (2026)

Section 330.020, 'When Pedestrian Shall Yield,' sits in Chapter 330, Pedestrians' Rights and Duties, alongside the companion rule at § 330.010 that gives pedestrians the right of way inside a marked or unmarked crosswalk when traffic signals are dark or absent. Outside those protected crossings, the ordinance flips the right of way: a pedestrian crossing anywhere other than a marked or unmarked crosswalk must yield to all vehicles on the roadway within the intersection or about to enter it, and the section states in plain terms that it is unlawful to jaywalk within an intersection or at mid-block unless the city has provided a special marked crosswalk at that spot.

The rule traces to Ord. No. 122, § 25, one of the city's original traffic ordinances, and it works together with § 330.040, which separately requires every driver to exercise the highest degree of care around pedestrians regardless of who has the right of way. The Waynesville Police Department enforces the section on Historic 66 East and the streets around the Public Square, where pedestrian and vehicle traffic mix most heavily, and violations are prosecuted in Waynesville Municipal Court. Because Chapter 330 sets no fine of its own for a § 330.020 violation, sentencing runs through the Municipal Code's general penalty clause, § 100.020, which applies the city's current Uniform Fine Schedule for Municipal Offenses plus court costs.

St. Robert, immediately west of Waynesville, and unincorporated Pulaski County enforce their own separate pedestrian rules, so the mid-block crossing rule described here applies only inside Waynesville's corporate limits.