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Have you ever seen those buttons at crosswalks in cities saying "Push Button To Cross Street?" We have them here in DC. I call them pedestrian pacifiers; they don't actually cause any change in the traffic, but they make you think they do, so you're more willing to wait at the curb instead of striding into traffic.
I know that so of you think I'm wrong. Well, here's proof that I'm not as crazy as you might think.
The city deactivated most of the pedestrian buttons long ago with the emergence of computer-controlled traffic signals, even as an unwitting public continued to push on, according to city Department of Transportation officials. More than 2,500 of the 3,250 walk buttons that still exist function essentially as mechanical placebos, city figures show. Any benefit from them is only imagined.
Yes, I know the article is for NYC, but I suspect the same would hold in more places. As someone once said, "I try to be cynical, but I just can't keep up."
Posted by Casper at February 27, 2004 03:32 PM