Every day. Every month. Every year. Millions of people around the world hustle and rush through the time pressured schedule of modern day society but all of them have one thing in common. They cross roads. In particular many of them would have done this by walking over a zebra crossing, yet very few would notice or realise the gaping difference between your everyday crossing and a neatly arranged column of white stripes on the floor.
Introduced on Slough High Street in the United Kingdom on 31 October 1951, zebra crossings in around 70 years have spread across the world, glazing roads as far as Japan. However in that time they have not only been adopted by many countries, but had a significant impact on modern day society and safety.
Considering they are just white lines on the ground, many would wonder why they make us safer in our day to day life.
Firstly, they allow pedestrians to cross roads quicker, compared to locations without crossings. This is because the white lines signal drivers to give priority to pedestrians, which wouldn’t be possible to use in heavy traffic. Secondly, in certain areas, stripes containing fluorescent pigments have been used to reflect street light during the night to increase driver visibility and prevent injury to pedestrians. In the Dutch town of Eerbeek, this has been successfully used and can add to the visual appeal of zebra crossings over more intrusive and space demanding signals.
With this all being beneficial for local communities with zebra crossings their influence has even grown firm roots in pop culture. The Beatles, arguably the most iconic rock band in existence, were pictured strolling down a zebra crossing in Abbey Road. This arguably is one of the greatest catalysts for the Zebra crossing’s rise to fame, as the photo sparked a never before seen fascination in the originally commonly overlooked feature.
However, despite the pedestrian crossing appearing to be an invention of the present, its traces lead far back in history.. In fact, the street crossings date back to the pedestrian crossings that archaeologists found in the ancient cities of the vast Roman Empire. They consisted of stepping stones through which the wheels of the carts fitted . The oldest surviving pedestrian crossing in the world is believed to be in the ruined city of Pompeii near the Italian metropolis of Naples.
In the Middle Ages and early modern times, however, crossings fell somewhat out of fashion. Only when more and more cars started to travel the world's roads in the 20th century and accidents became more frequent did the safety of pedestrians come back into focus. The first attempts were made by the city of London. There, the administration introduced the first pedestrian crossings in 1948, delineated by parallel dotted lines. A year later, the United Nations in Geneva agreed on common road markings, which also specified the design of the crossings. Inspiration was found in antiquity. Instead of stepping stones, the designers opted for thick white lines.
So now, these seemingly insignificant lines which you may have crossed hundreds of times in your lifetime, have a meaning behind them . Their important roles and vast applications keep us safe on a daily basis. After all, if society has taken thousands of years to develop, wouldn't the lines that allow it to function also.
