Video Of The Week - Dancing Traffic Light Improves Safety

First there were the "piano stairs" that encouraged people to exercise, then came the "bottle bank" that transformed an ordinary recycling bin into a gaming arcade and now a dancing "red man" that made waiting at a pedestrian crossing, fun!

This latest endeavor is the brainchild of Germany's Smart Automobile. They conducted this fun experiment at a stop light in Lisbon last summer, to test if gamification of the red man would stop impatient pedestrians from dashing across the street, before the green signal came on.

In order to create the ever changing dance routine, passersby were invited to enter a nearby booth and choose their favorite music. When it was time for the "red man" to come on, the music would begin and the individual would show off his /her moves. A video feed of the dancer was transmitted to the pedestrian light in real time, resulting in a hilariously entertaining dancing red figure that kept the audience entertained until it was safe to cross. According to Smart Automobile, an astounding 81% more pedestrians stopped and waited for the green light than previously!

Resources: gizmag.com,huffingtonpost.com,