Share with Direct Line your ideas to make pedestrian crossings safer - £300 voucher to be won! NOW CLOSED!

[EmmaMumsnet]

Direct Line have approached us to ask MNers for their ideas on how to make pedestrian crossing safer for pedestrians and motorists. Over 7,000 incidents are recorded each year at UK crossings between vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians and Direct Line would like to hear your thoughts on how to improve them.

Rachael Lynch, Innovation Marketing Manager at Direct Line said; “72 per cent of UK adults feel crossings need to be updated and in October 2017 Direct Line developed the world’s smartest pedestrian crossing, the Smart Crossing. As we developed the technology, it became apparent that the potential for what could be done was far greater than we had initially imagined, which is why we have made the technology open source and are continuing to work with partners to explore ways to modernise the pedestrian crossing for all road users including pedestrians and motorists."

So please share below your most creative ideas for how to improve pedestrian crossings. Do also share your thoughts on the safety at pedestrian crossings and how you and your children were/are taught about road safety.

Everyone who comments on the thread will be entered into a prize draw to win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks,

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply

That it's a traffic offence not to stop when a pedestrian is waiting to cross - it's seems to be increasingly the case that cars drive straight through them even with pedestrians evidently waiting.

Better lighting would definitely help as it's busier at night and harder to spot pedestrians and cars coming pedestrians way.

Better lighting, ANPR cameras and create an offence of failing to stop!

Police traffic enforcement would improve safety

Fed up of cars and bikes running red lights

Reduction of street furniture around crossings would be good - we have one near me where its really hard to see if people are approaching the crossing as theres so many signs around it

There is a trend (at least in London) to drive through crossings when people are on them - ie when they are on the other side of the road, instead of waiting for the crossing to be clear. this needs to be addressed.

Crossings need to be highly visible - councils need to be obliged to maintain them to a very high standard.

Cycles are dangerous too and cyclists tend to cycle straight through. Bikes can kill and cyclists need to know they must stop.

Our school is busy road before and after school and has NO crossing. All schools should have crossings where appropriate. Our lollipop lady bravely does her job without a crossing - why??

We mostly have pelican crossings in our area, which I think is better than zebra crossings, but they need to be enforced. Cyclists are the worst in our area, they ignore red lights entirely but there's no way to identify them so they get away with it. It's very distressing for young children. Drivers also need to know they can only proceed if the crossing is clear - too many go ahead and block the crossing and are stuck in the middle when the lights change, so pedestrians have to walk in the gaps left between vehicles, breathing in their diesel fumes and trying to squeeze buggies in the small gaps. There should be fines to dissuade that using ANPR, just like on box junctions.

I agree with PP, traffic lights and giving pedestrians more time to cross would be great, and yes, I am a driver too!

Better lighting so drivers can see and road making maintained better would be good. I also think traffic lights at more crossings would be beneficial as drivers know they have to stop also may stop pedestrians just walking straight out before cars realise they are going to cross

Better lighting and also making sure that we wear sensible clothing so we are more visible

I think most issues are around behaviour of motorists rather than design of crossings. If everyone was more considerate, things would be far more pleasant. I wonder whether some drivers never walk anywhere so never experience the frustrations of being a pedestrian with idiot/inconsiderate drivers around.

I wish they would put cameras on pelican crossings and issue fines for those that go through the red light. Equally, I wish there was more done to fine those drivers that let pedestrians get halfway across the crossing and then drive across when the light is still red.

I think councils should take more responsibility for ensuring road markings are very clear. On wet days road markings can be very difficult to see, especially in the dark

I would add CCTV to crossing so when people report what is going on its picked up.

The crossing by me had tree leaves blocking view on one side for months as the council were too slow to do anything about it. Very dangerous.

There needs to be more done about drivers who refuse to stop, don't slow down and rev engines. The engine revving scares my toddler who is asking why the car is doing that while he crosses the road?

Timings again need to be longer for slower people.

More needs to be done about the bad drivers therefore need make it easier to report licence plates.

Lighting!!!
Better placement in some cases - 3 bad zebra crossings near me - just off roundabouts and drivers concentrating on roundabouts then extremely short distance to zebras. I actually know of people who don't use them as so unsafe

Speed bumps coming up to and just before the white lines. Also light reflector signs for the night.

Proper lighting and road marking. The warning sign near one we use is so faded as is the paint on the road itself. The beacon lights are not bright either.

My favourite traffic light crossing beeps when it's safe to cross. This just adds another element of safety for everyone.

Remind children to keep looking and listening. We should be able to assume that cars will stop, but this isn't the case.

Improved, larger signage, and bumpy yellow lines in the road (like driving onto Tamar bridge in Plymouth) for 50 yards or so as you drive up to it so that drivers are forced to acknowledge they are coming up to a crossing and need to be aware.

Better lighting on approach to help pedestrians and motorists, better maintenance of road markings and signs.
I also think more crossings in built-up areas would improve drivers' discipline and awareness.

I dont like the new type of lights where you the green man is low down on your side. Find it impossoble to keep an eye on traffic and to look to see the green man change.
The old light where green man was other side of the road gave me a much better perspective of the situation

Illuminate the poles that the lights are on with efficient bright led lights inside. They could be a dim green when traffic should pass, a flashing amber when preparing for traffic to stop & bright red when traffic is stopped. You could also have lights across the dropped kerb as you step onto the road the same colour scheme to discourage people stepping out until its the right time. I am hard of hearing & cannot hear the bleeping sometimes in a busy area. Better lighting can be achieved by utilising led bulbs.

I dont like the new type of lights where you the green man is low down on your side

^^ totally agree with that

glad im not the only one brownelephant

Definitely better lighting on crossings. Some drivers definitely push the limits about going through on amber but the closest I have come to being hit is by cyclists who completely ignore the red lights.

Barriers for cars.

Automatic vehicle registration reader, will send tickets to people who don't stop but will enter those who do into a lucky draw, winner gets £50 of fines that month.

Cameras showing pedestrians should be above the height of a car so if you are at a queue of traficc you can see someone is waiting.

There should be a 'slow' button for slower people, a bit like supermarkets that have the rotating doors you can slow down, this button would add extra crossing time.