Dick Puddlecote and the Civil Libertarian have both commented on this story, so I wasn’t going to comment, but even having slept on it, I just have to add my voice to the chorus of dissent.
Having been a driving instructor in days of yore and in days of yorer, a motorcycle instructor, I tend to take an interest in road safety. Mostly that interest involves watching in horror at the plethora of road signage, speed cameras and traffic calming designed to slow traffic down without addressing the underlying issues. All of these things are counter productive as simply going slower does not a better driver make. Indeed, there are times when going slow can be downright dangerous, but this does not enter the thinking of the terminally stupid who seem to rise to the top of the road safety profession. And, to make the point about stupidity, the idea being boasted of in Vancouver really is the walnut on the top of the whip.
We’re doing something completely different compared to our campaign last year to raise awareness about more kids being on the roads this first week back at school. In fact, our latest campaign is a Canadian first.
And, one hopes, a last.
Preventable, BCAA Traffic Safety Foundation, and the District of West Vancouver have launched a 3D illusion geared to make drivers slow down at high-risk intersections.
And this is the image:
Dick Puddlecote asks tongue in cheek what could possibly go wrong? Okay, as the cretins in the Vancouver Traffic Safety Foundation don’t seem to be able to see it, let’s just try a few off the top of the head, shall we?
Drivers will see the image and panic brake possibly causing a rear-end shunt.
Drivers will see the image and then become de-sensitised and fail to respond to a real child in the road until it is too late.
Drivers will see the image, panic and swerve, hitting oncoming traffic, pedestrians, cyclists or motorcyclists.
Drivers will see the image and not pay sufficient attention to the pedestrian crossing that immediately precedes it. Yes, that’s right, these nincompoops put it immediately after a pedestrian crossing.
Of course, these people will argue that if drivers were paying attention and travelling at an appropriate speed, these things may not happen. That, however, does not justify creating a situation that precipitates events when they may not have otherwise happened, does it?
To say that this scheme is staggeringly, jawdroppingly irresponsible and stupid is to give the jawdroppingly stupid a bad name.
¡Wow! I mean very, very wow indeed. There are things growing on forgotten lumps of cheese at the back of my fridge that could have told them this was a bad idea.
Are you sure it’s serious? It’s unbelievably stupid even by the standards of local government bureaucrats,
From what I can tell, yes, it’s kosher. Given the mentality in the road safety industry it’s pretty much the level of idiocy I’ve come to expect. It’s a logical extension of traffic calming measures that put two streams of traffic face to face on the approach to a bend – yup, seen that one.
Welcome to the wonderful wacky world of University of British Columbia la-la land. West Vancouver and Kitsilano can feel a bit other worldly at times.
Jesus, that is fuckwittery on another level.
But it’s all part of the mentality coming down from upon high – Tim Newman sums it up.
This is a follow on from last year when they were painting 3D effect potholes (huge ones) on the dual carriageways.
Stupid stupid stupid stupid.