John North Editor & Publisher

Traffic engineers are always experimenting with ways to make the roads safer. The latest twist I read about — experimenting with fake speed bumps — really stopped me short.

I mean, what’s next — virtual traffic lights and cardboard-cutout police cars?

In case you missed the story by The Associated Press, some smaller experiments with optical-illusion speed bumps in Phoenix two years ago are now being followed up by a much larger experiment in northeastern Philadelphia.

The Phoenix project showed that the painted-on “bumps” slowed the traffic, at least temporarily.

Now the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration wants to find out if the three-dimensional-seeming marks also will reduce pedestrian accidents.

If they are shown to slow traffic and reduce accidents, then government officials will be delighted to put them into use — especially because, at $60 to $80 each, they are much less expensive than conventional speed bumps, which cost between $1,000 and $1,500. The trompe-l’oeil versions also reportedly require little maintenance.

In Phoenix, the experiment found that the special markers resulted in a doubling of drivers who obeyed a 25-mph speed limit, although the effect wore off after a few months.

To counteract the lessening of the novelty effect — after which motorists are inclined to start ignoring the markings — Philadelphia authorities are adding a publicity campaign to let drivers know that the phony bumps will be followed up with real police officers.

To improve their nighttime visibility, the Japanese-made markers contain reflective glass beads.

Still, The AP reported that only a few of nearly two dozen people interviewed in Philadelphia reported slowing down for a virtual speed bump.

Here in Asheville, our intrepid drivers face a smorgasbord of the more traditional — and expensive — traffic-calming devices, such as various types of bumps, dips, traffic circles and roundabouts.

While I am among the cheerleaders for the virtual speed bumps because I think they can be both effective and cost-effective, I can’t help but wonder how far such low-tech solutions might go in our high-tech-worshipping society.
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John North, publisher and editor of the Daily Planet, may be contacted at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .