#walk button

[shnical2018]

[covertrook]

We push the walk button; we push the walk button again, We push the walk button again; we are on fire at the intersection.

Nancy Jo Cullen

[designdabbling]

Don't you love conflicting directions. Spotted in Menlo Park.

[furryalligator]

Ask CityLab: Do "Walk" buttons actually do anything? https://t.co/BvKL3sdKTC pic.twitter.com/ck0mZiP2eq

— CityLab (@CityLab) January 10, 2016

[genqueue]

Poster child for Societal Pacification

Why Doesn't the "Walk" Button Work at the Crosswalk?

Most New York City street crossing lights are controlled by computers, sopushing the "walk" button has no effect. Many pedestrians have wondered, "Does the walk button at the crosswalk actually work?" In New York City, the answer is no. Traffic lights in the Big Apple are controlled by computer, so even though the walk buttons are still found on crossing posts, they don't work. No matter how many times a pedestrian may anxiously press "Walk," the buttons are not connected to the traffic light system. Read More: http://www.wisegeek.com/why-doesnt-the-walk-button-work-at-the-crosswalk.htm

Only a diehard pedestrian can appreciate this. And we are a dying breed. So just keep pacifiying us till we die out. (On the other hand, supposedly millennials are turning away from car ownership.)

[littletinyfish]

2. ...The button makes the "walk" signal appear. Maybe. If the system is set to skip the pedestrian cycle, pushing the button may result in display of the signal, depending on traffic volume and time of day. But the signal won't display sooner if you push.

In Los Angeles and many other communities, sensors in the roadway (those circular loops about two yards from the crosswalk) communicate with a traffic control center. Monitoring traffic flow allows lights to be synchronized and cycle times to be adjusted.

A button that will cause the "walk" cycle to run may work under some conditions of traffic synchronization and not under others. For example, if vehicle traffic is light, some systems delay the pedestrian signal through another complete cycle despite the button having been pushed...

There is a Walk signal in Walker's Point that cycles irregularly, but it will count down as if it cycles regularly. If you don't push the button, after the countdown completes it will skip the Walk signal and resume the Don't Walk signal. So you have to push the button and wait even longer to cross the road.

I think there can be an argument that bicycles should follow most of the rules of the road, but it will be hard to convince me that pedestrians should ever have to give up their right of way in the world.

[fiftyshadesofphotos-blog]

Maturity level: 0.