zebra crossing

A term used to describe the black and white striped crosswalks used world-wide.

The term zebra crossing is generally believed to have originated in England where the first white-striped crosswalk was installed in the late 1940s. The goal at the time from the UK’s Transport Research Laboratory was to find a way to make crosswalks safer for pedestrians and easier for drivers to see the crosswalks.

The term zebra crossing is better known in the transportation industry, the accessibility community, among city planners, and among pedestrian safety advocates than the general public, and is therefore considered jargon. If using the term, be sure to include a definition or description.

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