"pedestrian" = 'traveler on the sidewalk'

[Garson O'Toole]

Wikipedia, the voice of the people or the hive mind says: "A
pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running.
In some communities, those traveling using roller skates or
skateboards are also considered to be pedestrians."

So the meaning is shifting somewhat away from the OED (June 2008)
sanctioned "pedestrian B. n.  a. A person who goes or travels on foot,
esp. as opposed to one who travels in a vehicle; a walker; one who
walks as a physical exercise or in athletic competition."

A cyclist does use his or here feet to power locomotion.

On Sat, Jul 24, 2010 at 5:02 PM, Joel S. Berson <Berson at att.net> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Joel S. Berson" <Berson at ATT.NET>
> Subject:      "pedestrian" = 'traveler on the sidewalk'
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Or perhaps 'traveler not operating a motorized vehicle'?
>
> Boston Globe, July 24, 2010, page 1, Photo caption:
>
> "Pedestrians biked down the revitalized North Street [Pittsfield],
> now host to festivals, open houses, and art shows."
>
> [The cyclists are on the sidewalk, not the motorway.  This particular
> illustration is not included in the on-line article.]
>
> Joel
>
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