The National Transport Agency (NTA), in collaboration with the Department of Transport (DfT) and Active Travel teams in Limerick City and County Council and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, has said it will begin piloting a new type of zebra crossing in some parts of Ireland.
According to the transport bodies, the pilot will see eight new crossings installed, included five in Limerick and three in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, which will operate without flashing orange Belisha Beacon lights. The new zebra crossings will reportedly include fixed signs that will alert motorists to the crossing instead.
The NTA and DfT teams hope that, by facilitating crossings without a requirement for beacons, they can support road authorities to increase the number of crossing points and assist with active travel and pedestrian safety in urban areas where speed limits are 50km/h (31mph) or less.
Anne Graham, CEO of the NTA, said: “Working with our partners in the local authorities, the NTA is looking for innovative ways to roll out new infrastructure that will make it safer for pedestrians.
“Based on the findings of the pilot, we could see more of these easier to install zebra crossings appearing on roads nationwide“.
Joe Seymour, head of active travel investment at the NTA, said: “This type of zebra crossing is much cheaper to implement and will have far less ongoing maintenance costs.
“There is also the benefit of no longer requiring any electric power as there are no flashing beacons. As a result, they can be delivered in a more timely manner.”
The pilot is expected to last for nine months. It is not intended to completely eliminate the use of Belisha Beacons. Rather, those involved hope it will provide data to inform a decision on whether to omit or replace them with a fixed sign in some locations.
In most pilot location cases the Belisha Beacons will be replaced with a fixed sign, with the two options shown below being used:
