At a light-controlled crossing, both a pedestrian and a cyclist press the same single button and are shown the green signal to cross together, riding and walking side by side. Unlike a pelican crossing, there is no flashing amber phase; instead a steady red-and-amber shows before the lights return to green for traffic. What type of crossing is this?
- A pelican crossing, since pelican crossings always allow cyclists to ride across alongside pedestrians
- A toucan crossing, a light-controlled crossing designed to be shared by pedestrians and cyclists, who cross together after pressing a single push button
- A puffin crossing, since puffin crossings replace the flashing amber phase with a steady red-and-amber phase for cyclists only
- A zebra crossing fitted with an optional signal add-on, since zebra crossings normally have no lights at all
Why B? And why not the others?
Correct answer: B. A toucan crossing, a light-controlled crossing designed to be shared by pedestrians and cyclists, who cross together after pressing a single push button
A toucan crossing is a light-controlled crossing specifically designed to be shared by pedestrians and cyclists, who are permitted to ride rather than dismount, and who both respond to a single push button and a single shared green signal rather than separate pedestrian and cycle phases. Its signal sequence differs from a pelican crossing in exactly the way described: a pelican crossing gives a flashing amber phase to traffic before returning to green, whereas at a toucan crossing there is no flashing amber phase at all, and the lights instead go straight to a steady red-and-amber combination before green, matching the sequence at an ordinary traffic-light junction. A pelican crossing does not generally permit cyclists to ride across, which is precisely why the toucan crossing exists as a separate design; a puffin crossing, which detects pedestrians waiting at the kerb rather than using a fixed timer and also drops the flashing amber phase, is not defined by being cyclist-only, and a zebra crossing has no light signals of any kind, so it cannot have an amber or red-and-amber phase to compare.
Source: Highway Code Rules for Pedestrians — Crossings (Toucan crossing) (GOV.UK)