Newest Speed Bump...

[PineappleMama]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20100908/od_yblog_upshot/canada-unveils-new-speed-bump-optical-illusions-of-children

I donno about you guys, but ME personally I'd go slamming into one of those pillars to avoid hitting that... I would absolutely panic, even if going 20 I'd still SLAM the breaks... hopefully the person behind me hits theirs fast enough (as they can't see the thing it'll be delayed reaction AFTER I hit mine) and doesn't smash into me...

I 100% agree with the sentiment... for the love of pete slow your tail down... but I think this likely will result in an incredibly primal reaction in people... you need to THINK when driving, not just go on animal protective instinct.

Overall I'm thinking this idea could be a disaster... I guarantee you if I heard one of those things was on X street I would avoid it... because even knowing it's coming I'd still jump... just like a scary movie, you KNOW something is fixing to pop out at you... still jump. *shrug* that's me anyways.

 

[sfw2]

Yikes!

 

[PineappleMama]

Ohhh and then there's the other end of it... if people get used to this then when a kid really does run out into the street they might just think it's an illusion and keep on going... double yikes.

 

[Orchid]

Quote:
That's exactly what I thought when I realized what the thing actually was! Although I have to admit that at first glance at the picture, I thought she mostly looked like a ghost!

 

[PineappleMama]

Oh well THAT won't freak anyone out.

*shudder* Phew I didn't even think of that creep factor!

Even worse if they put it in one of those spots where people place crosses...

 

[mom'sfolly]

I'm a crossing guard at a school. I stand in the road twice a day, wearing a reflective vest in day-glo colors with a stop sign in my hand. Due to road construction, my cross walk isn't striped, but I do have traffic cones out and this is the second year that the cross walk has been at this location.....

This week alone, I have been nearly hit twice. I see all manner of foolishness by drivers, most of whom are parents of children at the school. Phones, make-up, breakfast, coffee, newspapers all get more attention driving through the school zone then the children do. Yesterday, I had people blocking the crosswalk, the intersection and trying to use one lane as two. Where does this all lead me...to the point that ANYHTING that makes people slow down in a school zone is a good thing. If I didn't think I would be fired, I'd be very tempted to use my son's paintball gun.

There, down off my high horse. This just hit one of my buttons.

 

[herefordlovinglady]

that's just not right. either of what was mentioned earlier is going to happen. someone is going to kill themselves trying to miss the "kid" or a kid is going to be killed because people are used to it. agggg. hate it.

 

[PineappleMama]

Not a high horse at all Folly... people do need to slow the heck down, turn off the phone, ignore the mirror and pay attention to the flipping road...

But this particular image... this is not a sign, not a bump or dip (that'll destroy your car if you don't slow down), not a clocker (those things that show how fast you're going)... not even a police cruiser with a radar gun aimed in broad daylight... this isn't something that you'll see a ways back and you know you need to ease off the gas before reaching that area/bump...

This is one of those things that will make you slam on the brakes and/or swerve to avoid the child. Besides the damage that slamming and swerving can cause it would also cause me some serious mental damage as well... I'm already a defensive (or the non-PC word is paranoid) driver... throwing kids (even holographic ones) out into the street is just going to make me a jumpy mess.

And, as I said before, why in the world would you WANT drivers to get used to seeing FAKE kids playing in the road... that split second where they keep going because they figure it's just another hologram could be the difference between life and death.

Nope, just not worth it to me. MUCH better to simply ENFORCE the laws on the books, actually punish people who risk others' lives (and that goes 100x for those who actually do damage) and eventually the message will get through... you rush, you pay/go to jail... you text, you pay... just as you drink and drive you go to jail (unless of course you're a judge then the evidence is deemed inadmissable and you get off scot free -local case here)... I KNOW that takes up a bunch of time, police time, DA's time, judge's time... but aren't our kids' lives worth it? Isn't that precisely what we pay taxes for?

Just my two cents... I hope like hades these things don't come to my town.