16May LEDs to Aid Pedestrian Safety in Singapore
Each year there are more than 10,000 traffic accidents in Singapore, many of them involving pedestrians. In response to these figures the Singaporean Land Transport Authority (LTA) has launched a six-month trial to see if LED light strips can improve safety at pedestrian crossings.
The futuristic looking LED strips have been placed on the floor near the edge of two busy crossings picked to be a part of the trial. They have been developed to operate in sync with pedestrian traffic lights.
When a green man signal is turned on, the LED strip on the floor turns green.
When the lights are about to change, the strips start to flash in green, to warn pedestrians that it is no longer safe to cross.
When the red-man signal is on, the light strips will glow a steady red in order to draw the attention of pedestrians, warning them not to cross.
The two crossings chosen to be a part of the trial are located at busy junctions, just outside the popular Bugis Junction shopping mall.
The junctions were chosen because they are located near popular amenities and are used by a high volume of pedestrians across different demographics, including young people and the elderly.
The LED lights will be turned on and visible 24 hours a day and over the next six months the LTA will consider if they are useful in encouraging pedestrians to focus more on traffic signals when they are crossing the road.
Similar trials have been rolled out in Frankfurt, Sydney and Seoul and just this year, The Netherlands started a similar trial at a pedestrian crossing in Bodegraven.
See the LED strips in action: