BobbyG

Most stop-for-pedestrian signs hit by cars, city data shows - Chicago TribuneHere's an article from the Chicago Tribune on how on street cross-walk warning signs are getting mowed down. My first thought as a commuting-cyclist was: If a static traffic sign doesn't stand a chance from inattentive drivers, what chance does a cyclist? But upon reflection I considered also that perhaps the placement of the signs is problematic, or they're a target for vandals (such as young drivers purposely hitting these things), or if they are some sort of way to put money in the pockets of the sign suppliers and road crews as a politcal favor. But the story did raise my "cyclists radar". Bottom line..."Be careful out there!"

welshTerrier2

First of all, these signs are not being deployed responsibly. Were they outfitted with flashing reflectors? Do they include high-lumen headlights so that they could be seen at a distance? And, while it wouldn't prevent collisions, were the signs at least wearing helmets?

The problem with road signs is that they are way too far to the right. If we really want to lower the incidence of car/sign collisions, perhaps we should encourage signs to take the lane. Just my two cents.

dynodonn 

Our city has learned that whenever they want to install an on road ped sign, and have last for a long time, they will now install a ped island to go with it.

BobbyG

Excellent point! (Ha, ha!)

mr_bill

The first day. The driver did keep right - if this was a downhill slalom.


-mr. bill

B. Carfree

In the waning weeks of the year, we have a new leader for "A&S Post of the Year"
Congratulations.

dynodonn 

The sign still looks better than the on road ped sign, that has no island, on the street that I travel on daily. The Styrofoam sign that is not protected by an island has been replaced several times, and as I write this, looks plenty worse for wear, whereas the one island sign still looks like the day that it was installed.

Looks like the city DOT forgot to put down indicator/splitting white striping just before leading up to the island

Coal Buster

And no street lights in view. On a dark night, you'd never see that island and the back of the sign is not reflective.

achoo

Were a cyclist to hit a street sign, the sign would almost certainly suffer zero damage.

These stats are meaningless.

mr_bill

There are two street lights each within 20 feet of the crosswalk.

First attempt at reflector deflectors, plus cones:


Didn't work (note the missing cone, and assorted pieces of automobile):


The cone carnage dislodged a block away (note yet another keep right sign listing in the background):



It would be funny if it wasn't so damn serious. This is who we share the road with.

-mr. bill

02Giant 

Why would you drive down the middle of the street?

Essex

What goofy county of Massachusetts has this type of road impediment? I will guess - Suffolk. I am a recent immigrant to Taxadachusettsks and have never seen of these strange things in the road. That said - I have seen plenty of strange things in the state already.

bikecrate

Around here they were putting up 3 - 4' high heavy duty plastic "paddle" shaped signs attached in the middle of the crosswalks on a flexible mount so when they were hit it wasn't so devastating. However, they were still hit by cars so many times they only lasted about a month in some locations. The also had "By State Law vehicles must yield to pedestrians in crosswalk" printed on them. It would have been more honest if they said "No vehicle will stop for you, cross at your own risk".

dynodonn 

Here at home, our city has numerous ped islands, the most damage they get is a tire rub, and a few have a blank yellow low reflective 12" by 12" sign installed on them. Another thing I've noticed, the island was made using dark grey concrete, here at home, they use either a brighter white concrete or the leading edges are painted white to make the ped islands more visible at night, and paint wide white or yellow dividing/splitter stripes leading up to the island.

dynodonn 

In my city, I've learned long ago to not underestimate the crazy logic of some motorists.

Coal Buster

Dark night with no street lights, would you be hugging the curb?

Caliper

What in the heck is the idea of putting a curb in the middle of a road? The road doesn't look extremely wide to begin with.

Besides drivers turning left not expecting/seeing an obstacle when driving at night, I wonder about garbage trucks, delivery trucks, trailers for lawn services and snowplows having a hard time even making the turn without leaving some of the marks seen.

KD5NRH

And this is why I think breakaway signs are contributing to the problem. Most of the people hitting signs are doing it as a result of their own stupidity, and replacing the signposts with sections of salvaged rail buried half its length in concrete would at least get their cars off the road.

02Giant 

The sign is back to back on the post, it can be barely seen in the first pic, but is definitely visible in a later pic posted showing it at a different angle.

I drive the same line day or night, my car has headlights.

KD5NRH

This. For a while, Lancaster (TX) was notorious for unpainted concrete curbs on 40+mph concrete streets. Most annoyingly on left turn cuts, so if you accidentally got into the cut ahead of the one you needed and were looking for oncoming traffic instead of gawking at the street itself, you'd get launched. Judging from the car bits and curb damage, it must have been happening several times a day. Here, we had the city ordinances updated to require that the curb be high-vis yellow or white with bump-type reflectors at the edge of the gutter pan in cases where it's being used to funnel traffic like that. Judging from the nice clean paint at one that hasn't been repainted in years, it works well.

KD5NRH

Turning left out of that driveway/alley there comes to mind, as well as swinging wide to turn right into it with a long vehicle or trailer.

Lowering the sign closer to where most people will be looking probably also helps; I don't know about you, but I tend not to focus my attention 7-8 feet above the road when driving a passenger car through a residential area. Low-flying aircraft just aren't that common of a hazard. Having the most visible bit right about pedestrian or cyclist torso level puts it right where I'd be looking for an obstacle.

mr_bill

Why did the pedestrian cross the road? To get to the other side. Ba duh dum.


Anyhow, the intersection is beyond well lit. So can we skip the dark with no lights bs already?


Do I really have to post a picture of the most recent incarnation, complete with stripes in the road (which will do no good since the paint will be covered soon and the folks who are hitting the island are coming from the other direction). Let's just say they are on Mark 8 now, which puts the lifetime of this "permanent" fixture in single digit weeks. I'll note that in the UK these things are self lit - and the drivers *still* hit them.


Finally, as far as trucks and the driveway - trucks back up into that driveway since there is no way to turn around in the driveway. A truck backs up into that driveway at least once a week. Not a single truck, not one, has ever hit the island.


One last finally. That's not a concrete curb - it's granite. Pretty much all our curbs in these parts are granite. We get them from, uh, the Granite State. (Actually, we don't. We have granite here too.)


-mr. bill

Coal Buster

Properly adjusted, the right headlight points up and to the right to illuminate signs. The left headlight points in and down to avoid blinding oncoming traffic. I don't know how many people have their lights properly adjusted anymore since they've done away with checking at inspection. The point is just because you have headlights on your car doesn't mean they're illuminating everything evenly or even well.

dynodonn 

Not only I've seen some improperly adjusted headlights, but many newer autos now have headlights that are designed not to blind oncoming vehicles, with the headlights having a cutoff line built in to them. Improperly adjusted, this headlight cutoff line can be more than just a nuisance, but can be extremely dangerous in some situations. Another issue with newer headlights is their gradual "fogging" over time.