Post Staff Writer
 Since July, pedestrians at select Kyiv intersections have been able to know how long they have to cross the street. In this case, 12 seconds remain at the corner of Volodymyrska and Bohdana Khmelnytskoho. (Post photo by Natalia Kravchuk) |
Don�t Walk. Walk. Run! Pedestrians caught in mid-street are often faced with scrambling to avoid the sudden onrush of autos when a crossing light changes unexpectedly. New crossing lights being installed across the city are designed to help give slower and elderly pedestrians a fighting chance of making it across the city�s wide boulevards safely, by incorporating a countdown clock into the signal. |
The first of the new signals was installed last July at the intersection of Bohdana Khmelnytskoho and Volodymyrska, according to Kyiv city official Mykola Biloshitsky. After an initial trial period, the new signals have been installed at six intersections, and there are plans to phase them in across the city.
The new signals are a welcome arrival for many residents, particularly newcomers. No longer will pedestrians have to guess when they have the right to cross, or how much time they have to do it.
"Often, I�m really terrified to cross the streets," says Lida Chachula, a Toronto native who has lived in Kyiv for the past year. She said that the new signals require a little longer wait at the corner, but ultimately seem to reduce jaywalking.
"You don�t get that crosswalk thing where people run across and get killed," she says. "Of all the places not to jaywalk, it�s here in Ukraine."
Laura Miller, a recent arrival from Toronto, agrees. She�s had a difficult time learning to navigate regular Kyivan intersections.
"Here, you get two flashes [warning], and then you get run over," says Miller. "These give you ample warning."
The new signals are made by Kyiv�s Rostok-Elecom. Similar countdown signals are being used in cities including Dublin, Ireland and Edmonton, Canada.
Biloshitsky said that the idea to bring them to Kyiv was the city administration�s own. He said that the city wants the new signals to create safer, more disciplined intersections.
"We brought them in to regulate the pedestrians who cross the street," Biloshitsky said. "There will be more order. Those trying to cross the street will look first, then make a judgment call and wait, if need be."
He said that the city has not yet gathered statistics from the three-month-old signals, but hopes they will be available soon.