Embeddeding Traffic Lights In Sidewalks So Smartphone Users Don’t Have To Look Up

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Have things really come to this? Embeddeding traffic lights in sidewalks so idiots don’t have to pay attention to their surroundings? What ever happened to thinning the herd through natural selection? Oh well, at least I learned what the word "smombies" meant. ;)

The city has attempted to solve that problem by installing new traffic lights embedded in the pavement — so that pedestrians constantly looking down at their phones won't miss them. "It creates a whole new level of attention," city spokeswoman Stephanie Lermen was quoted as saying. Lermen thinks the money is wisely spent: A recent survey conducted in several European cities, including Berlin, found that almost 20 percent of pedestrians were distracted by their smartphones. Younger people are most likely to risk their safety for a quick look at their Facebook profiles or WhatsApp messages, the survey found.
 
No, no, no. What we need is connections to traffic lights on my side windows so I don't have to look straight out. I can stare at the hot woman walking down the sidewalk without needing to pay attention to lights.
 
Actually, I think it's kinda nice. I tend to look down when I walk because the sun gets in my eyes. I'm sensitive to light - in vision - and I look down to avoid squinting all the time. Wearing sunglasses only helps a little bit. Also, the more information you present the better, right?
 
So some government person thinks that folks too involved in their devices to notice they are stepping into a street full of moving cars will notice the fact the blurry thing under their feet they aren't paying attention to is glowing red?

Why not use the tech involved? Make a city street crossing app available that puts a red stop sign in the middle of the screen when the person is about to cross against the light. Couple it with a short range directional transmitter at each crossing. Shouldn't cost much more than the buried lights.
 
Dead Parrot said:
Why not use the tech involved? Make a city street crossing app available that puts a red stop sign in the middle of the screen when the person is about to cross against the light. Couple it with a short range directional transmitter at each crossing. Shouldn't cost much more than the buried lights.
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Asking the government to high jack phones?
 
Steve said:
Have things really come to this? Embeddeding traffic lights in sidewalks so idiots don’t have to pay attention to their surroundings? What ever happened to thinning the herd through natural selection? Oh well, at least I learned what the word "smombies" meant. ;)

The city has attempted to solve that problem by installing new traffic lights embedded in the pavement — so that pedestrians constantly looking down at their phones won't miss them. "It creates a whole new level of attention," city spokeswoman Stephanie Lermen was quoted as saying. Lermen thinks the money is wisely spent: A recent survey conducted in several European cities, including Berlin, found that almost 20 percent of pedestrians were distracted by their smartphones. Younger people are most likely to risk their safety for a quick look at their Facebook profiles or WhatsApp messages, the survey found.
Click to expand...


I am pretty certain my crystal ball said that instead of trying to change human behavior that they would instead try to engineer solutions around that behavior.

Besides, I think someone could just come up with an App for that :cool:

Really, an App that tells you what the lights are doing right on your phone.

Oh Damn, Dead Parrot beat me to it. Props.
 
I'd rather they use those tax dollars to hire people to stand at all the corners and when a dumb ass is about to walk into traffic they swat the phone out of their hands.

I'm sure they can hire some of those fake homeless people begging for change to do it.
 
I think they should just completely wall off the streets and use a locking automatic door system (if broken it stays locked closed)

Then, when the people are allowed to walk across the street the door will open.

And then, just to make sure we keep the gene pool clean, we have a special door that always allows people staring down at their phones through.

Embedding lights into the ground.... BWAHAHAHAHAHA. Huge waste of money and I can pretty much guarantee that it is going to be not very reliable not to mention people who are already being stupid are not going to notice it.
 
c@Nc3r said:
I'd rather they use those tax dollars to hire people to stand at all the corners and when a dumb ass is about to walk into traffic they swat the phone out of their hands.
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I think a better idea would be hiring a person to take photographs as the idiots wander into traffic and get hit.

Then the pictures for each week are posted on the street corner as well as posted on a Darwin Awards site.
 
lcpiper said:
Shouldn't require that. Your app is tracking your location and movement and "sees" the traffic signals ahead and warns you as you approach them.
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Again, that requires you running whatever approved app is needed to make that happen. If you sign off on it, that's fine. However, if I'm running around with a phone in airplane mode...and all of sudden my device tells me something, I'm getting my tin foil hat.

Also, I'm all for this idea to even include sound for blind pedestrians. I'm all for an over abundance of information. You can never really have too much. And, if things are changing, why not adapt?
 
Dead Parrot said:
So some government person thinks that folks too involved in their devices to notice they are stepping into a street full of moving cars will notice the fact the blurry thing under their feet they aren't paying attention to is glowing red?

Why not use the tech involved? Make a city street crossing app available that puts a red stop sign in the middle of the screen when the person is about to cross against the light. Couple it with a short range directional transmitter at each crossing. Shouldn't cost much more than the buried lights.
Click to expand...

Honestly the stop sign should come up even if you're about to cross on a green, because you should look up regardless of whether or not you have the right of way. Having the right of way isn't a forcefield.
 
twonunpackmule said:
Again, that requires you running whatever approved app is needed to make that happen. If you sign off on it, that's fine. However, if I'm running around with a phone in airplane mode...and all of sudden my device tells me something, I'm getting my tin foil hat.

Also, I'm all for this idea to even include sound for blind pedestrians. I'm all for an over abundance of information. You can never really have too much. And, if things are changing, why not adapt?
Click to expand...

Not really, depending on how things are being done, it would be possible to run any app you wanted that is designed to function according to the standards set for the activity. Some systems work by "pushing" data, others "pull". If the traffic lights are all "pushing" their current status and your App is just reading and filtering then your phone would never have to do anything put receive the push and poke you when it matters right?
 
Have we reached the point where people texting get hit by cars more often then deer yet?
 
No, but I am certain the rate has surpassed how often my wife gives it up :cautious:
 
mynamehere said:
And the idiots STILL won't see them.
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I agree. I doubt peripheral vision is enough to trigger people to snap out of whatever they were doing. The mind seems to reject a lot of stimuli outside of the eyes area of focus.

Even if perirpheral vision was enough, they still have to contend with the angle at which someone's eyes are at. Are they looking straight down as to see their shoe laces or are they looking several feet out? That angle will be critical to how soon they might see the lights.
 
lcpiper said:
I am pretty certain my crystal ball said that instead of trying to change human behavior that they would instead try to engineer solutions around that behavior.
Click to expand...

I agree, form should follow function.

Besides there are other reasons persons might not want to look up besides smartphones. Sun glare was mentioned and is valid. I can also see someone trying to keep their head down if it's raining, snowing, etc. , and their either trying to keep the rain off their face, are hooded, or are trying to hide under an umbrella.

I think its a great idea, and I wish my city had these.
 
the Chinese students around here seem oblivious to everything when looking at their phones don't think they'd notice any lights on the ground.
 
They should be putting more things in the way not removing them.
Better a bumped noggin than a full car splat!
...unless they are trying to weed the gene pool down.
 
I want to win the lottery so I can afford to go around smacking peoples phones out of their hands if they are being this fucking oblivious. Honestly if you are so damn self absorbed in your phone that you can't look up to cross the STREET. You deserve to get run over.
 
Honestly this is a terrible idea. But then again, I did see an early 20's woman jogging and texting actually run face first into a telephone pole. She needed an ambulance she hit so hard. Would have been much worse if it was a bus!
 
SCSI-Terminator said:
I agree, form should follow function.

Besides there are other reasons persons might not want to look up besides smartphones. Sun glare was mentioned and is valid. I can also see someone trying to keep their head down if it's raining, snowing, etc. , and their either trying to keep the rain off their face, are hooded, or are trying to hide under an umbrella.

I think its a great idea, and I wish my city had these.
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There is no reason you shouldn't make people look up though. Cars don't always stop. Bikers routinely violate traffic laws. A quick 10 second glance up to make sure the coast is clear should be habit, and vigilance should be kept while crossing the street anyways.
 
Let cars drive on the sidewalk. That solves any pedestrian problems.
 
Why is it so hard to hold your phone out in front of you? You can hold your phone upright in front of you and look at it that way...
 
Phone location doesn't change where your attention is. When someone is using their phone while driving, guess where their phone is. It's upright and in front of them. Does that keep them from hitting other cars? Nope. They still hit things.
 
You guys are missing the forest for the trees. This is less about cellphone and more about the VR headsets will be walking around with in 10 years. It's good they are planning ahead.
 
MadMurdock said:
You guys are missing the forest for the trees. This is less about cellphone and more about the VR headsets will be walking around with in 10 years. It's good they are planning ahead.
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People shouldn't be walking around distracted. If they do, they should get run over.
 
Monkey God said:
People shouldn't be walking around distracted. If they do, they should get run over.
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If they did this at the intersection outside my place of work and you did not look up you would have a decent chance to get run over even if the crosswalk sign was on. The road is a 3 lane T intersection with 1 way traffic (well except for the bus lane which goes the other way). At least 1 time a week I witness someone running the red in the far right lane (which can not easily see the turn traffic) sometimes 30 seconds or so after the light has changed as a result I do not start crossing until I see all 3 lanes have stopped.
 
I have been at many intersections equipped to assist the blind with auditory signals, guess that's not enough?

I mean it works for the blind for crying out loud.
 
The blind tend to be listening though...

They should run bouncy pillows on rails by the edge of the road when the traffic is moving to bounce people back.
Or have pits open up for the stupid to fall into when traffic is moving.
 
Yeah, the blind tend to pay attention. Can't remember the last time I listened to music outside but I think it's been a good 8 years or so.

Tsumi said:
There is no reason you shouldn't make people look up though. Cars don't always stop. Bikers routinely violate traffic laws. A quick 10 second glance up to make sure the coast is clear should be habit, and vigilance should be kept while crossing the street anyways.
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what what?
 
Dekoth-E- said:
I want to win the lottery so I can afford to go around smacking peoples phones out of their hands if they are being this fucking oblivious. Honestly if you are so damn self absorbed in your phone that you can't look up to cross the STREET. You deserve to get run over.
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Why would you need to win the lottery? Just become a superhero and call yourself "Mr. Pay Attention". You can have a super hero costume and just run around whacking cell phones out of idiots' hands.
 
cyclone3d said:
Why would you need to win the lottery? Just become a superhero and call yourself "Mr. Pay Attention". You can have a super hero costume and just run around whacking cell phones out of idiots' hands.
Click to expand...

Because I need to be able to afford to replace their phone. Obviously if I'm being a dick it is going to cost me money because this is the real world.
 
Why, why is it you think it's so damned important that we all have to pay attention to mundane things or die.

Why do you refuse to accept that maybe, with the assistance of technology implemented in an effective and logical fashion, we won't have to pay attention to such things anymore? Maybe we can be freed of that, maybe the tech can watch for us.

There are airplanes flying around that no human can fly without computer assistance, it's impossible, a human alone can't keep them in the air. Man AND machine.

No I don't think lights in the sidewalk is the answer, I think if the street is crowded you won't see anything but the ass and legs of the people in front of you. They need a different solution, at the same time, I am not sure that playing hard ball and hoping for a cleaner gene pool is the answer either. I think the phones can be made aware and thereby make us aware of what is happening around us and alert us to dangers.
 
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