Study Shows LED Stop Signs And Optical Speed Bars Slow Traffic
A new study commissioned by the Virginia Department of Transportation has found “less invasive alternatives
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Comments
James P. Morse
The speed bars are absolutely brilliant.
I much prefer mind games to traffic tickets.
I wonder how long it will take for the population to adapt to the deceit? And then what happens?
michael f
I agree with James. The speed bars sound like a good idea but it may end up as huge spending based on little more than novelty. Once the novelty wears off then speeding will return. I wonder if these may interfere with peoples ability to perceive how quickly they are coming up behind someone though..possibly leading to accidents?
JN
There is no revenue in slowing people down. They will never implement this no matter how good it works.
Max
I like these measures because they are actually aimed at increasing safety and not revenue. $1600 per stop sign is pretty hefty though. You won't be seeing these at every corner anytime soon.
Dustin
The speed bars are novel, but I wonder if there is a hypnotic effect during a late night drive home...
ZeGerman
The signs will have to come down in cost to be a reality, but I have no doubt that they will.
The speed bars, although they may actually slow the speeds down, seem to be doing so by distracting the driver. They need to conduct long-term testing with the bars to see if accident rates go up, despite the slower speeds.
ryan
i think the cost of the LED stopsigns would come down dramatically in the next few years. plus, being solar powered, the only thing you have to worry about is the eventual replacement of the stopsign, as the LED's and the solar power would keep it going indefinately.
the speed bars i've never seen/heard of. but it does remind me of the perception and cognition classes i took, and it looks like it's a solid idea at least.
John Carder
I suspect that the speed bars would lose their effectiveness pretty quickly.
Signs are surprisingly expensive already. $1600 is not that much, in comparison to what it costs to buy and install a stop sign. That's a lot more likely to happen and survive.
naggs
"...and the survey found that the lines resulted in a decrease of between 4 and 12 percent on roadways with a posted limit that’s at least 5 miles-per-hour too low"
how exactally do they determine if the posted speed limit is at least 5 mph too slow?
ZeGerman
Imagine stealing one of those stop signs. Dorm rooms would never be the same...
MiniCooperJD
Chicago added these "speed bars" on the s-curve on Lakeshore Drive, where the banking of the curve is non-existent. Needless to say, it doesn't seem to slow anyone down! The speed limit is 35 on the corner, and most people routinely go 45-50 mph
Adhominem
The danger of these non-invasive techniques is that they might only work as long as they are new. What is not clear form the article is whether the study rann long enough to take this effect into account.
While you get used to cameras and bumps, that doesn't make them any less effective. I'm not so sure about blinking stop signs and bars on the road. The human mind is amazingly good at filtering.
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