If the red light falls on the feet – then this should also be noticed by the distracted mobile phone user. With a “smartphone traffic light” they are now trying to avoid accidents in Neuss.
A red light shimmers on the floor, the illuminated area is no bigger than a skateboard. Directly under the pedestrian traffic light in Neuss, this light is intended to warn pedestrians and save lives.
A young woman is standing at the traffic light. When asked about the new idea, she looks up searchingly: “I didn’t even notice that,” she says. Another passer-by does not notice the system either. “Something like that is superfluous,” he says. Another woman is waiting for her green phase at the traffic light. “I know there are so many accidents caused by cell phones. It’s really terrible,” she says. “That’s why I think it’s actually quite good with the traffic lights here.”
The red light is not only displayed on the traffic light for distracted smartphone users – it is also projected in front of their feet and onto their cell phones. The hope: Cell phone users will notice the red light and pay more attention to traffic lights and traffic.
The red traffic light is reflected on the smartphone display – “depending on the position of the pedestrian”.
Test operation for one year
Little of this can be seen during the day. Johannes Steinhauer from the Civil Engineering Department in Neuss had imagined that to be a little better. “We’re just doing a test with the system here to see whether the simple method we use is successful,” he says. You just have to try some things. The projection of the light on the floor is more visible even when the head is lowered. In addition, the red traffic light reflects “depending on the position of the pedestrian” on the smartphone display.
According to the city, a test operation is initially planned in order to gain experience with the technology. The test should last at least a year. “Anyone who doesn’t let their gaze wander into the distance, but instead fixes their gaze downwards, perceives what is happening below them,” says Steinhauer. “That’s why the projection onto the ground should help. People should be able to see that it’s red now and they should stop.”
“We’re just doing a test here with the system,” says Johannes Steinhauer from the civil engineering office in Neuss.
More accidents caused by cell phone use
According to a study by Allianz Insurance, 43 percent of all those surveyed occasionally type on their smartphone while walking, around two-thirds make calls and around a quarter listen to music. According to the study, all of this increases the risk of accidents. There is a connection between distraction and the risk of an accident.
“The use of electronic devices increases the probability for a pedestrian to suffer an accident,” says study author and psychologist Jörg Kubitzki. “Distraction is the most underestimated cause of accidents on our roads.” The risk increases more than fourfold when listening to music and doubles when writing texts.
The Neuss police support the test attempt with the traffic light. Because the number of accidents caused by smartphone distraction has quadrupled in the district from 2021 to 2022, says police spokeswoman Claudia Suthor. “All road users should pay their full attention to the traffic. Keep your hands off your cell phone. This means cyclists, drivers and pedestrians.”
“All road users should pay their full attention to the traffic,” says police spokeswoman Claudia Suthor.
Red light ideas in other cities too
The city of Augsburg had the idea of installing red flashing lights in the ground at two stops to warn mobile phone users of the tram. The Cologne public transport company had also installed warning lights in the ground at three level crossings to better warn distracted pedestrians. So far, this has hardly achieved anything, as an accompanying scientific study found.
The scientists counted the number of red runners. The irregular behavior of pedestrians caused by the warning lights was not improved, at least in Cologne.
An example from Hagen shows that the problem should be tackled. There, an eight-year-old boy was so busy with his cell phone that he ran into a bus while crossing a street. The child suffered only minor injuries.
In Neuss, the red light is now coming from above and may help to increase road safety. “We will import our results into the committees,” says Steinhauer from the civil engineering office in Neuss. “There are also other technical options. Hopefully at some point there will be a recommendation that we can use in a clever way.”