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Pensioner fined for slow street crossing

An elderly man in north-west Italy has been fined for crossing the street too slowly, according to Italian media reports.

Pensioner fined for slow street crossing
The elderly man was fined in Pinerolo, north-west Italy. Photo: Iron Bishop/Wikimedia Commons

The 85-year-old man, who walks with a slight limp, was crossing the road in Pinerolo, a town near Turin, when he was stopped by officers.

He had failed to make it across the road before the green light turned to red, violating the town’s rules, La Repubblica reported.

Residents have long since complained that the traffic light gives pedestrians just a few seconds to get across the street, not allowing enough time for the less able walkers.

The elderly man was nonetheless slapped with a €41 fine and duly paid within days, earning him a reduction to €28.70.

But on hearing the news the town mayor, Eugenio Buttiero, said he would refund the pensioner.

"We want our officers to be zealous and I haven’t yet had time to speak with the person who gave the fine, to understand what happened and to see whether there were any excesses," he was quoted in La Repubblica as saying.

"In any case, tomorrow I will go to the elderly man’s home and refund him the money he had to pay for the fine out of my own pocket." 

But local police chief Ermenegilda Aloi suggested his officer was right to fine the elderly man.

“In the records, there's a doubt that the man crossed on the green light,” he said. 

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