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Perhaps our traffic jams are due to too many rules? Classic video that demonstrates an alternative way of doing things: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEIn8GJI

Perhaps our traffic jams are due to too many rules? Classic video that demonstrates an alternative way of doing things: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEIn8GJIg0E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEIn8GJIg0E

johnisgood 7y ago
You might want to read about Hans Monderman. > Monderman's work demonstrated that city and village streets become safer when they are stripped of traffic controls so that drivers must take cues from observing people rather than signs. Though it sounds chaotic, the results of Shared Space have shown to be just the opposite: traffic moves slower and the rate of major accidents declines drastically. > His design approach is the concept of "shared space", an urban design approach that seeks to minimise demarcations between vehicle traffic and pedestrians, often by removing features such as kerbs, road surface markings, traffic signs, and regulations. Monderman found that the traffic efficiency and safety improved when the street and surrounding public space was redesigned to encourage each person to negotiate their movement directly with others. https://www.pps.org/article/hans-monderman https://www.pps.org/article/hans-monderman https://www.pps.org/article/shared-space https://www.pps.org/article/shared-space https://www.maharam.com/stories/rawsthorn_hans-mondermans-naked-streets https://www.maharam.com/stories/rawsthorn_hans-mondermans-na... For the record: > First implemented in his native Netherlands, Monderman’s designs have since spread throughout Europe, South Africa, Australia, Japan, and Brazil, and Canada. They are also making an appearance in often car-dominated U.S. cities such as Pittsburgh, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, and Chicago. > "It's a moving away from regulated, legislated traffic toward space which, by the way it's designed and configured, makes it clear what sort of behavior is anticipated," said Ben Hamilton-Baillie, an English urban designer who coined the phrase Shared Space after trying out Monderman's controversial ideas in his hometown of Bristol. Hamilton-Baillie now promotes Shared Space projects in Germany, Belgium, and Denmark as part of an ongoing project of the European Union.
- lazyjones 7y ago
  This line of thought has become very popular among city planners here in Austria, but I've seen it implemented in 2 different ways: - in Vienna, they give priority to pedestrians in such shared zones, cars have to go very slowly and often struggle with large numbers of people in areas frequented by tourists. There is also a lot of confusion around the question where cars are actually allowed to go and when - in some tourist areas in Italy, where lower traffic roads have no sidewalks and cars go 30 Km/h, pedestrians walk on the edge of the street. This seems just as safe and less frustrating for drivers.

johnisgood 7y ago

You might want to read about Hans Monderman. > Monderman's work demonstrated that city and village streets become safer when they are stripped of traffic controls so that drivers must take cues from observing people rather than signs. Though it sounds chaotic, the results of Shared Space have shown to be just the opposite: traffic moves slower and the rate of major accidents declines drastically. > His design approach is the concept of "shared space", an urban design approach that seeks to minimise demarcations between vehicle traffic and pedestrians, often by removing features such as kerbs, road surface markings, traffic signs, and regulations. Monderman found that the traffic efficiency and safety improved when the street and surrounding public space was redesigned to encourage each person to negotiate their movement directly with others. https://www.pps.org/article/hans-monderman https://www.pps.org/article/hans-monderman https://www.pps.org/article/shared-space https://www.pps.org/article/shared-space https://www.maharam.com/stories/rawsthorn_hans-mondermans-naked-streets https://www.maharam.com/stories/rawsthorn_hans-mondermans-na... For the record: > First implemented in his native Netherlands, Monderman’s designs have since spread throughout Europe, South Africa, Australia, Japan, and Brazil, and Canada. They are also making an appearance in often car-dominated U.S. cities such as Pittsburgh, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, and Chicago. > "It's a moving away from regulated, legislated traffic toward space which, by the way it's designed and configured, makes it clear what sort of behavior is anticipated," said Ben Hamilton-Baillie, an English urban designer who coined the phrase Shared Space after trying out Monderman's controversial ideas in his hometown of Bristol. Hamilton-Baillie now promotes Shared Space projects in Germany, Belgium, and Denmark as part of an ongoing project of the European Union.

lazyjones 7y ago
This line of thought has become very popular among city planners here in Austria, but I've seen it implemented in 2 different ways: - in Vienna, they give priority to pedestrians in such shared zones, cars have to go very slowly and often struggle with large numbers of people in areas frequented by tourists. There is also a lot of confusion around the question where cars are actually allowed to go and when - in some tourist areas in Italy, where lower traffic roads have no sidewalks and cars go 30 Km/h, pedestrians walk on the edge of the street. This seems just as safe and less frustrating for drivers.