Today, I am in suburban Washington DC at the Turner Fairbank Highway Research Center discussing Countermeasures at Urban and Suburban Midblock Crossing Locations. The primary focus of this research is to determine the location of Rapid Flash Beacons and other such devices to improve pedestrian safety. It is a national panel of nearly 25 people discussing opportunities to improve public safety and focus on these measures. The panel includes FHWA researchers, agency practitioners, and even public health advocates, so it is an interesting cross section and I look forward to bringing information back to the City on this.
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I love the new R10-15 (turning vehicles yield to pedestrians) sign you show above, particularly where the conflict is not expected or hard to see.
ReplyDeleteBut I'm not sure whether I like it at signalized intersections. If signed for the NB RT movement, some may interpret it to require a driver to yield for a pedestrian crossing the SOUTH leg of the intersection, even when NB traffic sees green circular and/or green right-turn arrows.
I understand these signs had a good track record in New York (City?), but I could not find whether that was at signalized, or unsignalized, or uncontrolled crosswalks.
Another complication in a "stop for" state like Oregon or Washington: Do you replace the yield symbol with a stop symbol? Or with the word "stop"? Or do you leave it per MUTCD and open the door for a ticketed driver to contest his or her failure-to-stop citation?
If the pedestrians are difficult to see at the intersection, it is good to communicate that they are likely present.
ReplyDeleteI think we could replace the yield with a stop, which is an excellent point.