How the first stoplight started
Because of all the recent discussion about the Madison Ave Road Diet and red light cameras and protected bike lanes, you might find this quick history about the origins of the traffic light interesting. It highlights how the way we think about streets now isn't the way people have always thought about them. [Vox]
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Interesting stuff. Thanks for sharing it.
I find it odd that the article discussed only interactions between motorists and pedestrians (with one reference to other non motorized road users). Bicycles were a big deal at this time. So much so that paved roads were introduced around this time for their benefit (skinny tires fared poorly on wet dirt roads).
The article mentions that motorists killing pedestrians were considered to be murders. Bicyclists who pedaled quickly were also derided--they were referred to as scorchers and police worked hard to control them.
How times have changed. Motorists can kill pedestrians and bicyclists without getting so much as a ticket. Bicyclists are still derided, but only in part because they sometimes present a danger to pedestrians and much moreso because they slow traffic (even though it typically takes no more than 10 seconds to wait for a safe time to pass).
How long will it take today's motorists to realize that in a town like Albany, speeding traffic isn't a plus. You can motor from one end of town to the other at 20 mph in 15 minutes. At 20 mph, only one in ten pedestrians hit by a motor vehicle die. At 30 mph, about half die. At 40 mph, nine out of ten die. Seems to me most motorists travel down Western at about 40. Oh well. Cars are king and the king wants to kill. So be it.
... said Randal Putnam on Aug 5, 2015 at 4:00 PM | link