Are pavement or sidewalks section of the road?

Explanation

Yes — both the pavement and the shoulder count as part of the "road".

In its legal definition, a "road" is the entire strip of land prepared for traffic, comprising the carriageway, the shoulders, the pavements and — where present — the dividing strip. That is, "road" is a broader concept than "carriageway"; the carriageway is only that part of the road on which vehicles travel.

This distinction is not merely definitional; it has legal effect. Wherever the rules use the phrase "on the road", the provision applies to the pavement and shoulder too: a collision in which a car's wheel has mounted the pavement is still a traffic accident, prohibitions on stopping and parking apply within the road area, and driving a vehicle along a pavement or shoulder counts as an offence on the road, not as conduct outside the scope of the rules.

The safety reason is to close precisely this gap. If the pavement and shoulder fell outside the definition of the road, an offending driver could claim that traffic rules do not apply there — exactly where the most vulnerable users, pedestrians, are present. Exam note: wherever "road" and "carriageway" appear side by side in a question, pause; most traps are built on treating the two as the same.

• Limiting the definition to the pavement leaves out the shoulder; the shoulder too is part of the road. • A negative answer equates "road" with "carriageway"; the carriageway is only the part of the road on which vehicles travel.

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