Don't Walk - Dance Instead!
by Startacus Admin
Urban safety just got a little less woefully dull and a lot more entertaining for the residents of the Portuguese Capital Lisbon. Instead of being faced with a functional, albeit tedious, static ‘don’t walk’ man, pedestrians at this crossing the centre of the city were treated to a quirky surprise. 
Their little inert man had been replaced by a highly amusing dancing one.
This interactive installation was designed to encourage locals to follow the rules, and wait until the traffic lights had made it safe to cross the street, before doing so.
Nifty trick you might think, but the whole thing reaches a new level of entertainment value when you consider that the little dancing man is no mere algorithm, but displaying the actual movements of other members of the public, who are dancing in front of motion sensor around the corner!
Take a little look at the video - which incidentally has been viewed over 6,000,000 times!
The Dancing Traffic Light!
The user controlled Traffic light that's brightening the day of pedestriansAs much fun as the whole concept might be, it serves a rather more serious purpose. Research (and common sense) will tell you that the most dangerous area for pedestrians in any city is at traffic crossings, simply because people fail to pay attention or misjudge a vehicle’s distance or speed. The dancing traffic light provides an incentive for people to wait until it is safe to cross, a theory which apparently holds up, since organisers observed an 80% increase in the number of people waiting for the little man to turn green.
One might lament the fact that people now need to be etertained by a set of flashing LEDs to stop from walking in front of moving traffic…but we aren't quite sceptical enough for that.
The installation was put together by Smart (as in Smart cars) as part of a genius marketing campaign ahead of the launch of new models of their compact city car.
We love it when people create projects which put playfulness novelty, fun and intrigue back into the urban spaces around us! If you do as well, you might want to check out some of these recent posts:
Interview with Playable City Award Winner - Shadowing
Hello Lamppost - Winner of Playable City Award 2013
Subscribe to our newsletter
If you would like to receive our startup themed newsletter, full of the latest startup opportunities, events, news, stories, tips and advice, then sign up here.
PropTech startup Vesta, a marketplace for buying and selling residential investment properties with tenants in place, aims to build on early success by fundraising £750k in investment.
The lowdown on the award winning Scottish startup and its innovative health monitoring device
The children's toys that burst to life with your smartphone or tablet through the magic of augmented reality...
The agtech startup that's using IoT technology to help beekeepers and in turn help us all!
Developed by Falmouth University in Cornwall, Launchpad is an innovative, post-grad incubation and acceleration programme. We take a look at some of the previous Launchpad alumni.
Lloyd’s Lab is back and on the global hunt for the next cohort of InsurTech innovators looking to shape the future of insurance innovation.
Time is a precious resource for every startup business. Here are 4 time management tips for startup owners to help juggle a huge number of tasks.
Influencer marketing has become a key promotional tool for brands and companies. With this in mind, RDB offer up their do's and don'ts when working with influencers.
Belfast-based software cyber security company Uleska announces that it has secured £500k in investment and sales, which will enable it to significantly grow product development and double its headcount.
The innovative app enabling young footballers to showcase their skills and talent...
Published on: 8th October 2014
If you would like to enable commenting via your Startacus account, please enable Disqus functionality in your Account Settings.
- Falmouth University Launchpad incubates tech legacy 7th Dec 2018 Developed by Falmouth University in Cornwall, Launchpad is an innovative, post-grad incubation and acceleration programme. We take a look at some of the previous Launchpad alumni.
- Ignite Accelerator 2019 opens for North East England startups 16th Nov 2018 North East of England entrepreneurs and startups take note! The Ignite accelerator, a 6 month remote accelerator for MVP stage founders or teams is back.
- Blockchain lab for startups StateZero Labs to offer £50k equity-free 15th Nov 2018 London-based StateZero Labs, the world’s first dedicated Blockchain Lab for startups, will be opening its doors to six selected startups as part of its first cohort in January 2019.
- UK scaling startups sort for Upscale Tech Nation programme 5th Nov 2018 UK-wide scaling startups take note! This free programme, care of Tech Nation is aimed at further accelerating the growth of your business.
