Unsafe is Safe: 7 European Cities Do Away with Traffic Signs

[mandy]

Are streets without traffic signs conceivable? Seven cities and regions in Europe are giving it a try -- with good results.

European traffic planners are dreaming of streets free of rules and directives. They want drivers and pedestrians to interact in a free and humane way, as brethren -- by means of friendly gestures, nods of the head and eye contact, without the harassment of prohibitions, restrictions and warning signs.

A project implemented by the European Union is currently seeing seven cities and regions clear-cutting their forest of traffic signs. Ejby, in Denmark, is participating in the experiment, as are Ipswich in England and the Belgian town of Ostende...

full article: http://www.spiegel.de/international/spie...47,00.html

[BellisimaJ.]

European traffic planners are dreaming of streets free of rules and directives. They want drivers and pedestrians to interact in a free and humane way, as brethren -- by means of friendly gestures, nods of the head and eye contact, without the harassment of prohibitions, restrictions and warning signs.

Are they insane? Have they ever seen what happens in a large city when the traffic lights are out? Do they plan to line up the pedestrians and just run them over? What about streets whose direction changes depending on the time of day(Washington DC has several like this---IN the city)?

YIKES! :blinkie: