Transport for London is closer to reducing the ‘green man’ time at certain pedestrian crossings, after a study revealed it would have ‘no measurable impact on safety’.
However, the TfL study found that more pedestrians crossed the road on a red light when the green man time was reduced to the national minimum.
And two-thirds of pedestrians are confused by the blackout period, supporting the mayor’s desire to introduce countdown system on crossings in the capital.
The study investigated the effect on road-users and traffic flow of reducing the time of the green man at pedestrian crossings. There was a recorded increase in vehicle throughput of 6.5% on the priority arm observed.
During the study, conducted by TRL, green man timings were reduced at nine signalised junctions from 10 seconds to six seconds. The blackout period of 10 seconds was unchanged, but the red man was increased from 68 seconds to 72 seconds.
Kulveer Ranger, the mayor’s transport adviser, said: ‘We are keen to look into whether an innovative countdown system could improve pedestrians’ safety by easing the uncertainty they feel when the green man disappears and split-second decisions are made about whether it is still safe to cross.
‘TfL is now testing electronic countdown systems, and I look forward to seeing a full report when that work is complete.’ London would become the first major city in England to introduce it.
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