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Pedestrian crossings and the tyranny of the green man
March 18, 2025
There is something deeply absurd about the modern pedestrian crossing. You press the beg-button and then you wait. And wait.
After an interval that always feels like it's been calculated to maximise your sense of irrelevance, the green man appears - a fleeting avatar granting you seconds to scuttle across the tarmac.
Bristol, however, has decided that enough is enough. City councillors are poised to approve a scheme that will give pedestrians immediate priority at crossings - if no one has used one for 30 seconds, traffic will be stopped the moment the button is pressed.
Yet, predictably, the objections have begun. A council report warns of “localised traffic congestion,” a phrase that neatly encapsulates the existential horror of the modern motorist: the prospect of having to wait a few moments longer.
Meanwhile, elsewhere, a debate rumbles on about how long the pedestrian ought to be granted to cross the road. For decades, traffic engineers have worked on the basis that the average walking speed is 1.2 metres per second. Now, at long last, the official guidance is shifting towards a more realistic one metre per second. But even this, according to researchers at University College London, is still an overestimation - particularly for those burdened with age, disability, or simply a more measured pace of life.
What this entire affair reveals, of course, is a deeper pathology. Our cities remain in thrall to the car. The pedestrian is, at best, an afterthought - at worst, an obstruction. Until this fundamental hierarchy is overturned, we will remain supplicants at the crossing, pressing the button, waiting for permission to step out into the great, indifferent rush of progress.
Children shouldn't have to beg for safe road crossings
Prendergast Ladywell School in London was promised a pedestrian crossing in 2012 but nothing happened. The longer they waited, the more dangerous the road became. Three children were struck by drivers on the street outside their school gates.
Parents frustrated by the delay were told by council officials that a safe crossing would reduce parking provision and increase danger as 'more people get run over on zebra crossings'!
It's the reason that last year we did our bit to help the school's campaign by visiting with our pop-up zebra. And why we were thrilled to hear back from the school with news a real crossing had finally been installed:
Thanks, in part, to your fabulous inflatable crossing, we have started the new school year with a brand new shiny crossing. It is such a relief and so great. We already overheard a mum walking her toddler and primary child this morning, the first day of school, turning to them and saying “And look at this fantastic new crossing we have”. Another parent commented on a parent group “I was there yesterday and a car actually stopped, never been so excited about a crossing!” So thank you for doing what you do. It really helped create a positive change for our community!
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Information correct at time of publication.
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