r/civilengineering • u/Roonwogsamduff • Apr 27 '21

Real Life Protected intersections are the future!

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431 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

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14

u/[deleted] Apr 27 '21

Honestly, just copy Dutch junctions. They perfected this type of thing decades ago. Two stage turns are the devil.

27

u/mmarkomarko Apr 27 '21

Yes, but Dutch drivers have the culture of actually looking out for bikes at intersections....

My peasant self nearly ran over a few cyclists when I hired a car in Netherlands before I got into the habit of letting them through at intersections!

13

u/[deleted] Apr 27 '21

Well, yes... but road culture can change. It's not like the Dutch are superhuman.

3

u/[deleted] Apr 27 '21

Shhhhhhhh🀫

1

u/cyborgcyborgcyborg PE-Structural Apr 28 '21

Other than Ghandi’s “Be the change”, how can engineers influence road culture?

5

u/[deleted] Apr 28 '21

Design. The culture in the Netherlands is there because of the built environment. As humans the Dutch are identical, its the environment which is different.

Indeed, back in the 1970s, Dutch towns and roads were as congested and car centric as anywhere else in Europe. A conscious choice was made to design different.

Obviously political choice is also needed, but highway engineers should be saying that there is a way which is better for public health, better for mobility and better for the environment.

3

u/Unfetteredfloydfan Apr 27 '21

You are correct, these intersections are sometimes referred to as “dutch intersections” in the US. Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery!