Safe text lights slammed
AN Australian trial of inground lights — aimed at protecting “petextrian” phone zombies — has found they are a waste of money, with one expert labelling them ridiculous.
The $250,000 trial showed that, while the lights do cut numbers who cross on red, the fall is no greater among those texting and mindlessly scrolling through their Facebook feed than it is for people paying attention to the traffic.
Pedestrian Council of Australia chief Harold Scruby said he thought the lights were pointless.
“They are bloody expensive. Why would we waste money on this?” Mr Scruby asked.
News Corp Australia can also reveal that the German city that attracted global attention in 2016 when it installed a small number of in-ground lights has decided against a broader rollout.
Shortly after the lights were installed in Germany, then NSW roads minister Duncan Gay announced a $250,000 trial in Sydney, saying “too many people are … looking at their phone rather than looking ahead”.
But a study of the lights’ effects by UNSW — obtained by News Corp Australia using freedom of information laws — concluded: “There was no evidence from the measures taken in the study that pedestrians who were using devices or looking down showed a disproportionately larger reduction in non-compliance at the intervention sites after the installation of the in-ground pedestrian lights than other pedestrians.
“Instead, the reductions in non-compliance following the installation of the lights were not specific to these groups.”
Test lights at the intersection of Goulburn and Pitt streets, which cost $124,000 to install, reduced the proportion of people crossing during a red light from more than 18 per cent to less than 12 per cent.
There was a lesser but still significant fall at the other test site at Dixon and Hay streets.
The NSW Government has decided against rolling out the technology across the city.
“Given the substantial cost of installing the lights, other methods of encouraging pedestrians to take extra care at intersections, like pavement markings or additional signage, might be more cost-effective if shown to be beneficial,” a Transport for NSW spokesman said.
The in-ground light tests in Sydney are believed to be the only trial of their type in Australia. Meanwhile that German city — Augsburg, in Bavaria — has decided against an expansion of its in-ground lights.
The lights were installed at two tram stops after a 15-yearold girl was fatally hit when she walked on to the tracks while looking at her smartphone. The initial move attracted media coverage from CNN, the Huffington Post and Australia’s ABC, among others. But there has been no coverage since the installation hit the headlines.
When News Corp Australia contacted the utilities company that put the lights in, a spokeswoman said: “It wasn’t a big enough success to carry on installing the lights.”