Safety is of utmost importance, Turarbai Bektarov adhered to this principle while developing an innovative project aimed to ensure efficient and effective pedestrian safety on Kazakhstan’s roads. The young scientist and inventor proposes to embed luminous structures into crosswalks to improve visibility in foggy or nighttime conditions.
“Zebra crossings should be re-painted every year, thus require stopping traffic in a certain area and thereby additional costs. Meanwhile, the illuminated crosswalk I have developed has a lifespan of over 10 years. Such smart road markings are used in various European cities. The system could reduce more than twice the big number of pedestrian accidents that annually occur in Kazakhstan,” said developer Turarbai Bektarov.
Luminous zebra crossings are already being installed on the roads of national significance. Five projected pedestrian crossings ensure the safety of road users in the Almaty region. Basically, they are used in high pedestrian activity areas, namely near residential places, educational institutions, medical aid stations and other facilities.
“The illuminated markings do not replace usual ones but duplicate them with special gobo projectors at night. The projection helps drivers to concentrate and notice people crossing the road in time. Drivers and pedestrians can clearly see the projection of white and yellow road markings 100-150 meters away and in bad weather conditions. To date, around 30 innovative pedestrian crossings are installed on national highways in nine regions of Kazakhstan,” Lyazzat Stamgaziyeva, QazAvtoJol spokesperson, said.
Over the first five months of this year, about 4,500 road traffic accidents have been registered in Kazakhstan. According to the statistics of the country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, the roads of national significance record the majority of traumatic accidents. Among other things, crashes happen due to the fault of pedestrians who cross the roadway in an inappropriate place and at a red light. Such innovations as luminous crossings are one of the measures to reduce the number of pedestrian accidents.
