A strong pink mild means cease, and pedestrians get the usual sign to cross the street. That is the one unambiguous section of the complete cycle. However after a number of seconds, the strong pink turns into an alternating pink mild, like a college bus or railroad crossing. In each of those instances, you actually, really want to cease, and for good motive, as a result of youngsters or a prepare will likely be crossing the road. However on a Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon, alternating pink lights imply cease, ensure no person’s crossing the road, after which preserve going. This similar conduct would get you a hefty high quality with a college bus, and just about obliterated on prepare tracks. The correct pink mild conduct for “cease, look, proceed if clear” is a flashing, not alternating, pink mild. They had been so near getting it proper, however then they took a improper flip and used the improper sign.
Not that it issues a lot. The UMass Amherst survey revealed that 65% of drivers blew by way of the alternating pink lights with out stopping, no matter whether or not pedestrians had been there or not. Maybe they’ve given up on determining what these complicated alerts are attempting to inform them and determined to simply go. Even worse, this section is close to the top of the pedestrian crossing cycle, the place the previous couple of folks could also be speeding to get throughout earlier than their mild turns pink and visitors begins flowing once more. So as an alternative of retaining pedestrians secure, this creates a scenario the place persons are operating into the crosswalk whereas visitors runs the alternating pink mild, with a doubtlessly disastrous consequence.
The Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon may very well be simplified to repair lots of its flaws. If we nonetheless settle for that driving by way of a darkish sign is appropriate, we may take away the complicated flashing yellow a part of the cycle, main on to the traditional conduct of a strong yellow, adopted by a strong pink mild meaning cease, as we count on. We may both change the alternating pink lights to flashing pink lights to precisely talk the “cease, look, go” conduct they’re making an attempt to convey, or skip this section solely and go away the strong pink on for so long as it takes pedestrians to cross, turning off solely when their crossing sign has expired.
Or, we may simply change the Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon with an ordinary pink, yellow, and inexperienced visitors mild. It already conveys the behaviors we would like, and by the point we have fastened the issues with the brand new sign, we’re only a inexperienced mild away from this anyway.
