The leafy Dongfeng Road in Changsha is one of the citizens’s favorite, but the dense trees will block the light from street lamps at night, which causes inconvenience for those who travel at night. Recently, several zebra crossings on this road have been painted in eye-catching reflective colors. The lights near the zebra crossing, much lower than other ones, are used to illuminate the way home at night.

Zebra crossings are lighted for the elderly

“I go out for exercise every morning and evening. There are more cars at night. In the early morning they are very fast so the elderly are particularly cautious when crossing the road,” said an old man, who just finished exercising at the Martyrs Park, Dongfeng Road, at 7 o’clock in the evening. He lives in Liufangling and has been exercising for many years. “I come every day except when it snows and freezes, for fear of falling down.” He discovered that the zebra crossings at several intersections of Dongfeng Road were repainted in reflective colors with lights on.

“The elderly cross the road slowly, and we like to wear dark clothes. Because of the dense trees and dim light, every time crossing the road, we must find someone to go together so that drivers can see us.” Now he feels more at ease, “The drivers and we can both see the road clearly. It’s a great idea.”

There are 7 colorful zebra crossings in red and white or in red, white and blue, with each supplemented with lights from Yingpan intersection of Dongfeng Road to its viaduct.

Pedestrians are more visible to motorists

In 2020, the traffic police in Kaifu district analyzed the reasons for accidents causing fatalities from various aspects in the past three years to eliminate hidden traffic hazards. When it comes to the Dongfeng Road, the visibility of pedestrians crossing the road is a hot topic of discussion. As a result, the proposal to illuminating zebra crossings with more lights was quickly approved.

Chen Zhengxiang, a police officer from Anxuan Squadron, introduced that there are many pedestrians and non-motor vehicles on the narrow Dongfeng Road. At night, some sections are dark, posing serious safety risks due to the shade of trees. This time the zebra crossings were repainted in reflective colors according to the national standard, and equipped with flashing lights, and warning signs that do not affect driving, allowing drivers to see pedestrians at a long distance and reducing accidents. “Only when they are seen can they be safe,” Chen Zhengxiang said. A total of 21 colorful zebra crossings have been added.

Street lights illuminate the white stripes of zebra crossing.

Transportation facilities are to be upgraded in Changsha

In addition to this, there are 58 special zebra crossings in the school sections, one of which is luminous at the Yingwan intersection, Xiaoxiang Road. After a period of testing, the luminous ones will be used throughout the city. This year, the traffic police in Changsha will further improve the city’s transportation facilities, especially in Wuyi Square and surrounding areas with a large traffic volume.

Edited by Li Ling