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Calgary City News Blog: Calgary's pedestrian criss-cross great, but with a little wait

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Calgary's pedestrian criss-cross great, but with a little wait

It's been just over a year-and-a-half since The City of Calgary introduced the city's first ‘scramble’ or pedestrian ‘criss-cross’ crosswalks.

According to Troy McLeod , The City's manager of traffic, each pedestrian criss-cross has been a big success, but he does admit that not everyone is 100 per cent happy.

“Pedestrians think it’s fantastic that they’re able to cross diagonally . . . but now they may have to wait a little longer until it’s their turn to cross,” said McLeod.

The city’s two scramble crosswalks, which were implemented in May, 2008, are unique because they allow all pedestrians to cross the street at once in any direction. When all four traffic lights are showing red, the WALK signal lights up and pedestrians may cross in any direction. During this time, traffic on all four sides is to remain stopped as right turns are not permitted on red.

The crossings, both located in Barclay Mall in Eau Claire on 2nd and 3rd Avenues and 3rd street, S.W., were chosen because they are pedestrian heavy but not significantly congested with vehicle traffic or along transit routs.

“There has been some impact on traffic but nothing too significant,” said McLeod. “‘Overall, there may be a little longer wait - for pedestrians and motorists - but it is safer.”

No other downtown intersections have been identified for similar criss-cross crosswalks in the near future.

Here is an informational video of the scramble crossing from last year. What are your thoughts? Have you tried walking the pedestrian criss-cross?

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Posted by Brad on Wednesday, October 21, 2009
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5 comments:

  1. I'm not a fan of the criss-cross. I think most people are happy to take care of their own safety and prefer that the city maximize the flow of both pedestrian and motor vehicle traffic. Moreover, walking south in the morning (from Eau Claire) it seems as if the lights are timed for the purpose of making pedestrians wait the maximum amount of time at the second light (3rd and 3rd). Of course, I'm not familiar with timing systems and assume this is done with good reason and other considerations in mind.

    Regardless, although I was very interested in seeing the differences the system would bring when the pilot started, I would conclude that this system should not be implemented at any other intersections and should probably be removed from the its two current installations. Bluntly stated, it's very simply an unnecessary annoyance.

    Thanks for the opportunity to comment.
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  2. Use them both everyday, Love it! First saw these in Washington, DC back in the late 60s. Need more of them throughout the downtown, so much safer.
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  3. I am a driver who goes through one of the criss cross intersections, and I think they're great! I find many traffic issues downtown are due to the sheer amount of pedestrians. The only problem I have with it are pedestrians who are unaware and cross without having the walk symbol lit, and drivers who ignore the no right turns on red.

    If more of these intersections aren't planned, could you look at more lead arrows so some traffic can flow without waiting for pedestrians?
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  4. I find that many traffic issue downtown are due to the sheer number of VEHICLES
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  5. As a cyclist, I'm not a fan of the scramble format. Many pedestrians don't look as they make their way across and I'm left weaving in and out avoiding people just to get across a small intersection. The scramble format works well in larger cities with big intersections, Tokyo or New York come to mind, but for Eau Claire in Calgary it seems unneccesary.
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