Grotesque

[Martin Cassini]

Out for a walk on Sunday afternoon, we wanted to cross a residential stretch of Kennington Rd. The traffic was light but steady. Was it about to slow down and let us cross? Was it f++k. We were near a pelican crossing and could have demanded a red. But we didn't particularly want to make the traffic stop, only for it to have to re-start. So we waited, half hoping someone would give way. But no, we had to wait for the entire traffic streams to pass, twice, i.e. on both sides of the pedestrian refuge. The system of priority based on status of road rather than time of arrival makes roads unfit. It encourages traffic to ignore the needs of others, in flagrant neglect of common law and fair play. It instils in drivers a greater respect for a traffic light than for common decency, even human life. It’s a grotesque set-up, supported by the law of the land. On FiT Roads, that insensitive behaviour would disappear, along with the "need" for traffic controls.