Californians will soon be able to jaywalk - as long as it's safe - without getting a ticket

Jaywalking will soon be legal in California after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law.

The new law allows people to legally jaywalk or cross outside of an intersection - without being ticketed - as long as it's safe to do so. The law will take effect in January.

AB 2147, also known as The Freedom To Walk Act, says people can only be ticketed for jaywalking if there's an immediate danger of a crash.

Assembly member Phil Ting (D-San Francisco), who introduced the bill, says expensive tickets and unnecessary confrontations with law enforcement only impact certain communities.

"It should not be a criminal offense to safely cross the street. When expensive tickets and unnecessary confrontations with police impact only certain communities, it's time to reconsider how we use our law enforcement resources and whether our jaywalking laws really do protect pedestrians," Ting said in a statement. "Plus, we should be encouraging people to get out of their cars and walk for health and environmental reasons."

Up until 2018, it was illegal for people to cross the street at a traffic light when the pedestrian countdown meter began flashing, according to press release released by Ting's office.