Comments for The Safe Streets Challenge: 2012

Comment on Road safety: a public health challenge (India) by Arun Bandi

Arun Bandi — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 08:09:52 +0000

ACCI-PREVENT SYSTEM

Accidents happen in a spur of moment .”Most of the accidents
happen due to wrong judgment while overtaking.

“Overtaking” is a virgin phenomenon & will continue occurring
eternally whether in single or bi-directional movements on roads.

In recent past “Use of flasher indicators” has decisively helped in reducing road accidents as they caution & indicate change in the status of direction of moving vehicles.

The need of hour is to declare the exact status of the vehicle in
movement &also declare the “immediate next actions to be happening” irrespective of driver’s desire.

That’s where the “ACCI-PREVENT SYSTEM” comes into picture devised solely by ARUN BANDI author of this article. The system is so conceived &designed so as to give prior intimation to co-drivers such as braking, sudden reduction of speed & sudden acceleration. The system so incorporated in the vehicle exhibit the intentions of driver, &such an intimation comes as an involuntary action from the vehicle itself ¬ from the driver.

The system can be compared with the involuntary muscular system of the human body, which control the functioning of vital organs of human body &which are fundamental for survival.
Similar approach is taken with this system. Irrespective of driver’s desire the system indicates changing speed ranges , idling, deceleration & and forward acceleration.

All the indications are conventional combinations of STOP, LOOK & GO, the basic traffic lighting system &hence no chance of mistakes.

The salient features of this system are :

ö Accidents of overtaking in unidirectional as well as
bi-directional movement will be
minimal.

ö Since it is irrespective of driver’s desire the co-drivers can
safeguard themselves by knowing the status declaration of the moving vehicle constantly & can take appropriate actions.

ö Due to constant indication of motional status of vehicle it will
help regulating ongoing traffic & reduce pollution.

ö Traffic in new words ,will have “TOTAL TRANSPERANCY” as everybody’s movement intentions are known to everybody.

öBy any evaluations this will be an innovative value addition to an existing safety standard of vehicle.

Working model of this system is available for
display and demonstration with author.

P A T E N T A P P L I E D F O R

INTERESTED ?

Want to share noble cause through new business proposal?
Please contact

ARUN BANDI -+ 91 9765878233, 8554842433, 020 24300209
e-mail– bandi_arun@yahoo.co.in

Pl see arun_bandi.mp4 on you tube for knowing exact working of the system

If you want to get a foolproof, cost saving ,Overtaking accident prevention system first time in the world Pl contact—bandi_arun@yahoo.co.in.-Since it is irrespective of driver’s desire the co-drivers can safeguard themselves by knowing the status declaration of the moving vehicle constantly & can take appropriate action – Due to constant indication of motional status of vehicle it will help regulating ongoing traffic & reduce pollution.-Traffic in new words ,will have “TOTAL-TRANSPERANCY”

Comment on Carlos Pardo on Slow(er) transport? by Chris

Chris — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:18:53 +0000

I would like to add that slow speed travel is applicable in practically all down town “exchanges” – places where people meet, shop have leisure. It has already happened, Look at how urban planners calm traffic or slow traffic in many down town center in European cities. It’s like saying slow down in this area. people are important. Carlos’s concept is akin to promoting safety and people first. It is a good idea and urban planners in their physical planning should continue to design or improve in their urban planning concept and design to achieve acceptable physical plan that put people first and speed second.
In a small town in Sarawak, east Malaysia, we are working with the local council to promote safety in street through better design and a full fledged NMT routes. The idea is in the preliminary stage; I do not know how the people in this community will react seemingly everyone thinks driving personal vehicle is the norm. But as the advisor to the council, I think it si important totake the first step; slow down traffic; get involve in projects that benefits low income community by encouraging them to look for alternative transport so that a quality of life can be experienced.

Comment on Evaluating Public Transport Health Impacts by John Niles

John Niles — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 07:57:28 +0000

“When all impacts are considered, improving public transit can be one of the most cost effective ways to achieve public health objectives, and public health improvements are among the largest benefits provided by high quality public transit and transit-oriented development.”

Talk about music to a subway builder’s ears! She can go straight to the prime minister and get some funding from the immunization budget and those guys working on sewage treatment.

Seriously, there are some qualifications and boundaries on the report’s bottom line, right? Maybe they are in a different report.

Comment on Progress report and work plan for 2012 – For comment and finalization by Richard Layman

Richard Layman — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 07:18:00 +0000

I guess I would make two comments:
(1) Donald Appleyard’s study of streets in San Francisco with high traffic vs. low traffic and the impact on relationships with others on the block is a very good explanation of the impact on traffic and road width on quality of life.
(2) Similarly, David Engwicht in _Reclaiming Our Cities and Towns: Better Living Through Less Traffic_ has an extended discussion about “exchange” (interaction of all types, not just commerce) and how traffic and road widening reduces the amount of space within communities dedicated to exchange.

Comment on Evaluating Public Transport Health Impacts by Richard Layman

Richard Layman — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 07:15:54 +0000

Comment on Carlos Pardo on Slow(er) transport? by Patrick Daude

Patrick Daude — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:26:44 +0000

Very good contribution from Carlos to the issue of speed and distances. It reminds me also to a personal experience I had when we had public transport strike in Stuttgart and I had to walk with my son to his kindergarten. He was so excited because normally we take the underground light train and now he saw several construction sites which he had never seen before. It was nice to see so many people on the streets walking and to watch your environment.

Comment on Op-Ed: Litman on Metro Projects and Urban Road Safety by Todd Litman

Todd Litman — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 17:46:23 +0000

I have no time to work on it right now, but you are welcome to expand the discussion by copying information from those documents, or from the “Safety Evaluation” (http://www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm58.htm ) chapter of our Online TDM Encyclopedia. The key point is that there is very good information indicating that smart growth and mobility management can significantly improve safety and health (or put differently, excessive automobile use increases traffic and health risks) in ways that are quantifiable and can be incorporated into the planning process, but that conventional planning tends to overlook and undervalue these factors, in part because traffic risk is measured based on distance traveled rather than per capita, and so ignores the increased risk associated with increased per capita mileage, and the safety benefits that result from reduced per capita mileage.

Sincerely,
Todd Litman

Comment on Defining principles: Remembering Mrs. Jacobs by John Warren

John Warren — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 09:20:11 +0000

n the same year, 2004 I sat next to Jane at a performance of “Waiting for Godot’. Mary Ellen (a town planner) spoke to Jane at some length in the interview. One thing we remember was the discussion about the cut in Jane’s trousers. Jane explained that the cut was from scissors used for clipping newspapers which she was organizing for her writing.

So we both had similar instances of her attention to giving all her thoughts to us. Her book published also in 2004 “Dark Age Ahead” was not well received at the time. In the book she speaks of the self destructive imperative of ’’efficiency’ where redundancy is eliminated as an extravagance resulting in ‘self inflicted cultural genocide.’

Her books have been a guide for us – they contain much wisdom. Also my memories of your visit to Toronto in 2004 are very positive much as it was a turning point in my life.

I do hope that out of the current financial crisis there can be a turning away from efficiency and its negative effects on culture. Here in New Zealand, far from perfection, there is an example. All citizens are free to move and work in Australia. The equivalent of Canadians having the same privilege in the USA. While many go, most stay in a country with lower incomes and a lower ‘standard of living’ but high in Reputability (Reputation Institute) and Transparency (Transparency International). So advocacy of improved outcomes through World Streets may not be seen as ‘efficient’ but it may be contributing to higher life quality.

Eric, many thanks for highlighting Jane’s work. Very best wishes to you and yours for the Season

John

John Warren

PO Box 7276
Taradale
Napier
New Zealand 4141

ph (64) 6 845 4623

Comment on Learning from the Barcelona Smart Cities Expo by Manu Fernandez

Manu Fernandez — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 20:14:51 +0000

Hi Eric,

Great move! I also attended the conference and had the feeling (a previous feeling in fact, in all this buzzword of smart cities) that we need to put some action beyond the formulations from private companies if we really want changes to happen. And this will only occur if public policies and citizen visions and needs are incoporated. I really enjoyed your session as it concentrated on real urban problems and real solutions for everyday life in cities. I always miss the street level in the smart cities retoric (all those renders from above and thinking in big scale planning only leads to infrastructure and hardware instead of thinking the way a pedestrian, the common people move on streets and carry our lives).
I will follow the initiative!

Comment on Seattle Crosswalk: Tap foot, Lights blink, Cross street by Michael Alba

Michael Alba — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 06:24:34 +0000

While I agree with Todd and I would love to change it, the fact remains that the majority of our transportation systems are not arranged in a way that vehicles and pedestrians get along well so we have to retrofit bad systems or bad designs.

I have never seen the yellow pad activation exhibited in this video but I have seen ‘better’ or more passive systems where the in-pavement lights require no special action on the part of the pedestrian. The lights are instead activated when an infrared beam is broken between two posts framing the crosswalk entrance. The pedestrian doesn’t need to do anything but begin crossing the street and the lights begin flashing. These appear to be used as a common treatment for midblock crossings in place of a full traffic signal control.

There are two examples near my home in Redwood City, CA – which is very forward thinking when it comes to sustainable transportation – but I know they are also present at the University at Albany in Albany, NY. I am sure they are used elsewhere as well, these are simply two places I know of that have used the technology.

Comment on Safe Streets 2012 Challenge: Let’s consider some context by micenmen

micenmen — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 05:25:19 +0000

excellent idea we should organise to move this ahead closely coordinating with OWS worldwide

Comment on Man – > Technology – > Speed – > Distance – > Destruction of proximity by Chris Bradshaw

Chris Bradshaw — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 04:32:01 +0000

Speed doesn’t just add to the distance people travel, but it is often done in the name of “safety.” When road engineers justify a policy in the name of safety, you can usually count on the policy being a means of limiting the freedom of pedestrians, cyclists, and transit, all in the name of saving these vulnerable persons’ lives and limbs — all the while they are degrading their environment in other not-so-subtle ways: reduced “eyes on the street” (and more crime), increased pollution (including grime and noise), and reduced use of transit, causing higher fares and less frequent service.