How to stop dummies from driving on the raised TTC ROWs?

[Admiral Beez]

Now that some woman has got herself killed by driving on the Spadina ROW, how can we stop dummies, tourists and others who simply can't drive from ending up on the ROW?

My personal treat would be to install something along these lines http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7_wpczou7g that drops down only for streetcars.

 

[theowne]

I'm not really familiar with the mechanism in that video and I'm not a driver, but were those cars trying to 'trick' the system or did they just not realize that the device was there? After all, they were behind a big bus that went straight through, how could they know? Or is there a huge sign or something nearby?

 

[W. K. Lis]

I think a flexible flap might be better, so that it would scrape along the bottom making noise but less damage.

 

[CDL.TO]

I'm not really familiar with the mechanism in that video and I'm not a driver, but were those cars trying to 'trick' the system or did they just not realize that the device was there? After all, they were behind a big bus that went straight through, how could they know? Or is there a huge sign or something nearby?

Look at the first shot in the video. There are big lit 'do not enter' signs on both sides of the road. These sort of installations are very common in the UK.

I'm not sure if these moving bollards would work well in our winter.

 

[W. K. Lis]

Could it mean railroad crossing signs, lights, and arms?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZSuv_PrlVk&feature=related

 

[Kitsune]

That intersection between Fleet / Bathurst / Lakeshore is hell-ish for anyone not use to it, and its quite easy, esspeically at night, to slip onto the Fleet ROW thinking its Lakeshore I've also seen people thinking the small little Bathurst ROW is a left hand turn lane. When they built the Fleet ROW they should of rebuilt that entire area so the ROW sits in the middle of lakeshore instead of to the right of it and get rid of Fleet St all together.

 

[Rainforest]

In Vienna, I saw streetcar ROWs being a few centimeters above or below the general traffic lanes.

Due to space limitations in the old city quarters, some parts of a route are in a ROW while others are in mixed traffic. Transitions are marked by pavement sloping up or down smoothly. This seems to be sufficient for most of drivers, although not idiot-proof I guess.

 

[Dan416]

You know, some people really deserve Darwin Awards

 

[Jayomatic]

Could we not just plant grass along all ROWs?

I think people would know that they are not supposed to be there if there was grass. Plus it would look much nicer and help with our green initiatives.

 

[TKTKTK]

I think people would know that they are not supposed to be there if there was grass. Plus it would look much nicer and help with our green initiatives.

I think grass ROWs would be really lovely. I'm not sure how 'green' they are, in anything but colour. I thought the efforts at keeping grass alive and looking healthy neutralized whatever environmental effect they have.

 

[wyliepoon]

... or put water in the ROW, like in Houston...

There are plenty of options that could be considered, from rumbling strips to an endless stretch of speed bumps to cobblestones. Anything to make a driver aware that he/she is not traveling on a normal stretch of pavement for cars.

 

[MetroMan]

Could we not just plant grass along all ROWs?

I think people would know that they are not supposed to be there if there was grass. Plus it would look much nicer and help with our green initiatives.

I've always loved the grass ROWs but I'm not sure how feasible that would be with our long winters.

Perhaps a good alternative would be to pave them with cobblestone instead. A different texture would notify drivers that they're not supposed to be there.

 

[gabe]

the grass looks amazing. But with toronto's winters and hot dry summers the green grass would be full of weeds.

 

[junctionist]

There's the matter of cost, but with all the development and the visibility of the downtown location, it could be justified. I like the water option. It could evoke the proximity to the lake.

 

[doady]

If someone is too dumb to know what a streetcar ROW is and pay attention to the road, then they deserve to get killed. The less idiots in the world, the better... less risk of pedestrians like me getting run over while they are talking on a cell phone intoxicated.

Also a victory for the environment: less greenhouse gases being spewed into the atmosphere.