Techdirt: Getting Rid Of Traffic Lights And Traffic Signs To Make Everyone Safer
When you remove all of the guidance, it makes people (and that includes the bikers and pedestrians as well) much more cautious and careful — so they tend to make fewer dangerous moves. On top of that, it actually makes the traffic flow much more smoothly, allowing people to get where they’re going much faster, even if they drive slower.
I suspect that this works better in cities, and Seven Corners might be too complicated to remove the signs, but this is an interesting concept. Basically, if you remove traffic signs and lights, everything moves more slowly and smoothly and people drive more safely. I suspect that this would only be temporary, though. People would drive more safely at first, but if you go through an intersection twice a day on your commute to and from work, many people will get used to the little quirks of the road (For example, at a particular intersection, the left lane always backs up trying to turn, so you get to the right before you get there) and take advantage.
Still, it is nice to see people examining things like this, which people take for granted, and wondering if there is really a better way, even if it sounds quite drastic.