Pedestrian Power! Police Want Vids of Zebra Crossing Violators

Original Irene Li theBeijinger

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When Beijing announced last week that it would finally start enforcing traffic laws regarding pedestrian crossings, city residents were, to put it mildly, skeptical.

To convince the public that they're taking this seriously, Beijing traffic authorities are now encouraging people to make videos of pedestrian crosswalk violations through a mini-app called 北京交警随手拍 Běijīng Jāojǐng Suíshǒu Pāi Beijing Traffic Recording.

That means pedestrians now can whip out their phones and upload the videos to report a-hole drivers to the Beijing Traffic Police themselves!

Unfortunately for us foreigners, the service is limited to Chinese citizens and foreigners with permanent residency. But the good news is, in our own experience, we've found that Beijing drivers are already aware they could be fined for crosswalk violations because we were able to trick them into not running us over in the crosswalk simply by lifting up our phone and pretending to record them.

But if you happen to hold a green card, or if you want to teach your Chinese friends how to seek justice for the hundreds of times you've almost been killed by a maniac behind the wheel that disregards the sanctity of the zebra stripes, here's how:

Step 1: Search 北京交警随手拍 in your WeChat search box, and it should pop up on top!

Step 2: Make an account by tapping 立即注册 (lìjí zhùcè register now). It will direct you to this page where you can enter your phone number and verification code:

Step 3: Once you have made an account, you will be able to log in on the mini-app with the password you have created.

Step 4: You will be directed to this page. Click on the blue button to film any traffic violation video (make it between 5 to 20 seconds long).

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Step 5: Note that any video you upload will have to be made on the spot, and it will tell you directly when and where you have made a complaint. Don’t forget to check that agreement button and you’re all set!

Oh, and try not to get run over while you're filming the car that is just about to run you over! Joking, actually -- we recommend you sidewalk vigilantes film from the safety of the sidewalk (send your buddy out into traffic and film him/her instead).

Are drivers really playing by the rules, or just when someone's watching?

As we mentioned, we've noticed that drivers will suddenly obey traffic laws if they know they are being filmed. But what about when you film them in secret?

We went down to Chaoyangmenwai Dajie to find out for ourselves -- at one of those clearly marked crosswalks that don't have an accompanying traffic light. Normally this is prime turf to almost get run over -- step into a crosswalk like that in the past and you would more often than not be either compeletely ignored by drivers.

In the gifs we made below, you can see a white car continuing into the crosswalk without yielding, narrowly missing a man in a red shirt who was already halfway across the road. Under the new rules, this is a no-no -- the car must stop and allow the pedestrian to finish walking across the street.

In just a few short minutes, we we also saw many other drivers breaking crosswalk traffic laws. It seems there is still a long way to go before Beijing begin can finally see the day when angry pedestrians can order drivers to stop and make way for pedestrians if they fail to comply.