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Worst Idea Ever: Virtual Speed Bump “Pavement Patty” Is a Driver Safety FAIL
Imagine driving through the parking garage of your child’s school. (Honestly, I should probably just stop there, because I’ve never in my life seen an elementary school with a parking garage, so even that’s hard for me to imagine.) You’re cruising around slowly, looking for a space so you can go in and pick up your kid and then – WHAM! – you’ve run over a 2nd grader. Or what appears to be a 2nd grader, but is really an optical illusion put in place to “bring attention to driver-caused pedestrian injuries,” or kill the driver courtesy of a heart attack, whichever happens first.
“Pavement Patty,” the 2-dimensional painting whose “elongated form appears to rise from the ground as cars approach, reaching 3D realism at around 100 feet,” supposedly comes to life slowly enough that if drivers are following the speed limit, they should be able to stop in time to avoid hitting her. Then they’ll casually realize she’s just a trompe-l’oeil and drive off having a nice laugh, I guess? Or drive off freaking out because it’s crazy that someone would paint the road with a fake child that an innocent parent might fake kill.
According to Discover Magazine, Vancouver community members have rightfully raised concerns about the image, worrying “drivers may stop suddenly or swerve into actual 3D children” nearby. (Isn’t the phrase ‘actual 3D children’ a little redundant and offensive? I mean, do we really need to remind ourselves that our children are human beings and not holograms? Guh.) In response, David Duane of the BCAA Traffic Safety Foundation told CTV news, “It’s a static image. If a driver can’t respond to this appropriately, that person shouldn’t be driving….”
Um, wow. I’m having trouble finding words to express my outrage at this man’s callousness and idiocy. First of all, a rendering of a child that moves from 2D to 3D, appearing to come to life only to be potentially struck by frightened drivers is hardly a static image. It’s a giant set-up for failure, and is sure to leave parents distressed and angry. It’s like handing a 2-year-old a jack-in-the-box and expecting him not to cry when the scary clown pops up and socks the poor kid in the nose. This illusion is a recipe for disaster and the people who thought of it should not be allowed around children. David Duane seems like the type of guy who’d babysit your kids, pop Children of the Corn into the DVD player and go, “What? It’s about kids and veggies! Come on. Maybe we should watch Child’s Play instead. That’s got a doll in it.”
Apparently back in 2008, Philly experimented with virtual speed bumps during its “Drive CarePhilly” campaign. But they had enough sense to choose an image of three spikes, mimicking “real 3D” speed bumps. Several commenters on articles related to this topic have asked how long it will be before drivers hit “real 3D” children, thinking they’re “static images” and discussing the already numerous distractions drivers have to deal with on the road, such as static signs and worse yet, digital billboards. (Someone please outlaw them already, would you?) Add people fumbling with the radio, making phone calls and texting into the mix and we’re all headed for a crash, bien sûr.
The Daily Mail reports that Patty will only be present at École Pauline Johnson for a week, but she’s sure to cause quite a stir during that short time. An accompanying sign reads, “You’re probably not expecting kids to run into the road.” Yeah. Nor would I be expecting to be punk’d by my local Traffic Safety Foundation, either.
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Spanking and Hitting Children Causes Anxiety | Strollerderby commented on Sep 27 10 at 9:33 ambob commented on Sep 08 10 at 4:31 pmAre we ready for defendants charged with vehicular manslaughter to say “Yes, the child was standing still, in the open, perfectly visible and I drove right over her. How was I to know she wasn’t a decal?” The pavement patty defense.
nathan commented on Sep 08 10 at 4:45 pmauthor=jackass
sparkiy commented on Sep 08 10 at 5:34 pmSo you stop short to avoid hitting the fake kid, and get rear ended? Awesome.
Amy commented on Sep 08 10 at 5:39 pmWhat the F? I agree with nathan and bob.
Erfquake commented on Sep 08 10 at 5:41 pmI’m sure people are going to love ‘safely driving over’ Pavement Patty. Oh wait! That was little Susie from across the street! Shit.
daniel commented on Sep 08 10 at 6:28 pmauthor sure is a psycho. i have no problem with this image on my streets. if you cant handle this you probaly shouldnt be driving like david duane said.
Chris commented on Sep 08 10 at 6:31 pmIf you can’t slow down in time to recognize that it’s a not a real kid then you are driving too fast!!! The point is to slow you down so you don’t kill a child. Do you really think that by driving over “fake” kids that you will become accustomed to kitting kids with your car?!?
Steve commented on Sep 08 10 at 6:51 pmIn response, David Duane of the BCAA Traffic Safety Foundation told CTV news, “It’s a static image. If a driver can’t respond to this appropriately, that person shouldn’t be driving….”
I’m pretty sure that statement was in response to concerns about people who cannot respond to optical illusions due to problems with perception issues in certain individuals.
“According to Discover Magazine, Vancouver community members have rightfully raised concerns about the image, worrying “drivers may stop suddenly or swerve into actual 3D children” nearby.”
I believe that Davids response to THIS concern was this:
Asked whether confusing and/or tricking drivers with such images might create such unintended hazards, David Dunne of the British Columbia Automobile Association Traffic Safety Foundation said that pedestrians need to be just as alert as drivers.
“People tune out. It takes an attitude shift for people to change,” “Dunne said. “Pedestrians need an attitude shift too. They have to realize that just because they are in a crosswalk doesn’t mean they are safe. In fact, most get hit while using crosswalks.”
You shouldn’t go demonizing people who are just trying to come up with better ways to help with driving saftey, even if the solution seems to be a little stupid. You also shouldn’t take things out of context either. In my opinion, I think they should use an image of a deer or something, or 3D words that say “SLOW DOWN!”, and not an image of a child, so in that way I guess I would agree with you.
nathan commented on Sep 08 10 at 7:27 pmIf the “Pavement Patty” decals are moved randomly to new locations daily or even weekly, then this might be a good idea. However having a static image in the same location over an extended period of time is a bad idea as it desensitizes drivers who traverse that location regularly. In the long run, “regulars” will be more likely to hit a real child if they are expecting (thus ignoring) the virtual speed bump.
Manjari commented on Sep 08 10 at 7:52 pmI agree with Carolyn and bob.
Boston Driver commented on Sep 08 10 at 11:14 pmA for Ingenuity. But… this mysteriously growing image of a child is very distracting (which it’s designed to be) but being distracted by some Amazing Stretching Kid draws your attention away from other things on the road – like the real kids.
And so after a year of Pavement Patty being in the road all day, every day, do you think that maybe the daily commuters will become immune to that kid in that spot? What happens when a REAL kid is in the road around that spot?
DON’T MAKE UP GIMMICKS TO FOOL DRIVERS INTO DOING WHAT THEY SHOULD BE DOING IN THE FIRST PLACE.
If you want a speed bump, put in a speed bump! Put a up a sign that says “speed bump” and paint some bright orange lines on the SPEED BUMP. Let the knucklehead that’s not paying attention go too fast over the SPEED BUMP and blow out his front end. Next time, he’ll REMEMBER. Next time, he’ll be more RESPONSIBLE.
carolyncastiglia commented on Sep 09 10 at 12:20 amAmen, Boston Driver. And I have to take you seriously if you drive in Boston!
Mark commented on Sep 09 10 at 1:00 amI agree with Boston Driver. Speed bumps and bright paint do what they’re supposed to do- slow down cars and make them pay attention. After all, the consequences for not slowing down over these humps are stress on the suspension/tires, to say the least. And no decent driver wants to spend extra money on repairs…
The thing about this is that, sure, it will work with some drivers, but not all drivers will respond to this in the same way. People will slow down, but some will brake hard, others will swirve, and certain people will just plow through. This invention works on reaction rather than common sense. Reactions are less rational. On the flip side, speed bumps are just common sense. You see them, you slow down. Didn’t have to bring out the “clever” illusion.
Matt commented on Sep 09 10 at 2:37 amWow, You know what this will do? I bet it’ll increase rear-endings as suddenly slam on the breaks at what to the person behind them is completely random and uncalled for. Yep. Seriously stupid.
Not to mention this has to be more expensive to maintain than an actual 3D speedbump. Come on.
There is also the possibility that this could desensitize drivers to the sight of little children in the street. Brilliant!
Dan commented on Sep 09 10 at 8:34 amhaha o this made my day, and here i thought Canadians are more reasonable than Americans. Well good to know we are all equally stupid when it comes to road safety.
Emily commented on Sep 09 10 at 9:45 amIt never ceases to amaze me the idiocy that springs eternal when undeserved paychecks have nothing better to do than reinvent the wheel. Honest to God, what if you are 70 with a heart condition?
Mike commented on Sep 09 10 at 10:25 amThis will serve as an attention getter for those who are a little speedy but on the other hand when those speed demons get used to seeing it they will disregard anything in the street that looks like a 2 year old child. I hope nobody’s child pays for this!!
Jon commented on Sep 09 10 at 12:44 pma speed bump would work much better.
This will just cause people that might not be paying attention or are bad/old drivers to slam on brakes or even swerve into the other lane to avoid the fake kid. Its more dangerous than it is safe.
BubbaJoe commented on Sep 09 10 at 1:25 pm“I bet it’ll increase rear-endings as suddenly slam on the breaks at what to the person behind them is completely random and uncalled for”
If the person in front of you slams on their brakes (regardless of the reason) and you hit them, it’s YOUR FAULT for following too close.
Dark-Star commented on Sep 09 10 at 1:47 pmAnother valiant but failed effort in the never-ending “For the Chyldrun” campaign at best…an ill-considered gimmick at worst.
If you try to scare people with something fake, the “gotcha!” will very quickly become ignored as they think “oh…THAT again. Yawn”. It’s a well-documented mental response.
Look at the national war on drugs or the yuppie Christian war on roleplaying games for easy examples. In attempts to scare people away from certain things (good or bad) people used lies…and promptly found that they were soon being ignored entirely.
The exact same thing will happen with Pavement Patty. Drivers WILL sooner or later run over a kid they think is just another painting.
Joseppi commented on Sep 09 10 at 4:03 pmThis is absolutely the worst idea I’ve ever seen. My immediate and only thought was “so what happens when someone fails to recognize a real child after being desensitized to this image?” Not to mention that it is a completely unnecessary distraction. Use a real speed bump if you need one, or create an “optical illusion” of a speed bump. If I lived in that area I’d be running around with a can of black spray paint. Arrest me.
Chase commented on Sep 10 10 at 2:40 pmAs a professional transportation engineer, this is probably the stupidest thing that I have ever seen, even as a temporary measure.
From the Ontario Traffic Manual Book 8 – Warning Signs:
“Warning signs are intended to provide advance notice to road users about unexpected and potentially dangerous conditions on or near the road. The conditions to which warning signs apply typically require that road users exercise caution, and may require that drivers slow down, in order to travel safely in the presence of a hazard.
In order to retain the public credibility of all traffic control devices, consistency in application is necessary. Insufficient warning signing may leave road users unprepared for encountering hazards, while over-signing or exaggerated signing may result in complacency. It is important, therefore, that warning signs accurately convey the severity of the hazard about which they are warning.”
Nowhere does it suggest that a warning sign should attempt to shock or surprise drivers into lower speeds. This sign simply adds to the “visual noise” of the roadway, distracting from real hazards.
A few scenarios immediately come to mind when a driver encounters the sign, all of which are undesirable.
1. A distracted driver observes the sign with insufficient time to slow down and engages in dangerous evasive maneuvers potentially endangering other motorists or pedestrians around him or her.
2. Drivers who have not encountered the sign slow down when they see the sign, and then speed up again (likely in an annoyed state) after they realize that it is just an illusion, and not an actual child.
3. Drivers who have already encountered the sign ignore the sign and continue to drive at their original speed, becoming accustomed to not slowing down for the image of a child on the roadway.
The fact that no ‘erratic’ driving behavior has been observed so far is essentially meaningless. It only takes one driver who causes some kind of a collision to create a negative impact that was not there before. The risk introduced by this pavement marking should be completely unacceptable given the virtually non-existent benefit.
This is just a publicity stunt which will have no lasting effect on driver behavior or speeds on any roads. It is well understood and substantiated by research that the only way to safely change driver speeds for the long-term is to change the perception and geometry of the roadway (e.g. streetscaping, narrowed lanes, speed bumps/humps/tables, bumpouts/chicanes, and/or additional consistent long-term enforcement, etc.).
There is nothing wrong with trying to bring public attention and education to the very real issue of motor vehicle fatalities and pedestrian safety especially as it relates to children. However, there are better ways to do it without increasing the risk to drivers on the road today.
Blah BlahBlah commented on Sep 16 10 at 12:26 amThis is Dim, really Dim. It wouldn’t take long for drivers to believe that every girl with white shoes, a blue denim skirt and a pink ball is just a dumb painting, so lets romp an the gas and get it. Or wait, was that a pink skirt and a blue ball. or a white sweater and yellow shoes…or, oh heck, romp on the gas; its just a painting….
David Tyrie commented on Sep 17 10 at 12:31 amCommentsPAVEMENT PATTY is the WORST ! ! ! FUCKING IDEA EVER ! ! !
Drivers WILL ! Eventually become conditioned in seeing the optical illusion A.K.A PAVEMENT PATTY all the time & WILL! eventually ignore them…
& WHEN ! ! !
NOT IF murphy’s law strikes!And A real child dressed exactly the same way as PAVEMENT PATTY
or evan remotely similar to PAVEMENT PATTYCrosses the road, the child will get HIT by a driver expecting to see a picture of a child… A.K.A. PAVEMENT PATTY not a real one.
The other possibility is that a driver or drivers will SWERVE out of the way of PAVEMENT PATTY only to cause a needless accidents or SWERVE right into a real child and KILL them ! ! !
DEFINITELY NOT A GOOD FUCKING IDEA YOU FUCKING MORONS !!!!
I gess you STUPID FUCKERS are asleep at the switch in the R. & D. Department
or you just don’t like children ! !
SouthBaySurfer commented on Sep 17 10 at 9:39 amI am starting to believe that all those who oppose a idea or measure to slow people down are the exact morons we are trying to save our kids from. If you were going the speed limit you would be able to tell 1. that it is a hologram image, & 2. that it is also a very large decal stretching down the street once you get closer to it.
As for the comments about speed bumps, You try going to you city hall and get them to install speed bumps on a narrow street with a steep hill. They just wont do it, due to the grade and possible traffic hazards associated with having them there. So i guess in the mean time I will have to keep my child a prisoner in our house, while the rest of you inconsiderate morons want to speed down a private residental street. Put the phones down, stop texting, grow some compassion, and remember the days of when you were a kid playing in the streets around your house and the residence would actually slow down for you. I guess those are times of the past.
joe peter commented on Sep 23 10 at 8:22 ami go with Carolyn. this is interesting to know.
Florida Drug and Alcohol Course commented on Jan 19 11 at 2:12 amThanks for this Post..
http://www.trafficschoolonlineflorida.com/florida-drug-and-alcohol-course.html
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