New ‘pedestrian scramble’ or ‘barnes dance’ crossings are set to be trialled in Hobart from today.
The City of Hobart and the Department of State Growth will turn on two new ‘scrambled crossings’ this morning, enabling pedestrians to walk in all directions on a green light.
The trial will start with the Liverpool and Collins Street intersections at both ends of the Elizabeth Street Mall and will see the introduction of pedestrian only and vehicle only phases.
“There will be a new traffic signal phase where the traffic signals in both directions will display a green ‘walking’ signal for pedestrians, and red lights in all directions for vehicle traffic,” the City of Hobart said.
“This will make it safer and easier for pedestrians to cross the intersections in all directions, with no interaction with car traffic.”
During the green light phase for vehicles, pedestrians will see a red “don’t walk” signal, allowing cars and buses to proceed without waiting for pedestrians.
UPDATED: The City of Hobart say an unforeseen “technical issue” has delayed the installation of pedestrian scramble crossings in the CBD.
The issue is expect to take a “couple of weeks” to be resolved, meaning the crossings will operate as standard for the foreseeable future.
