[Electronics-talk] Electronics-talk traffic signal app

[Sarah Clark]

I am reading a lot of judgmental posts on this topic. It isn't always as 
simple as listening to traffic patterns.  Besides the so called "silent 
cars" that are becoming more and more prevalent, in Beverly Hills where I 
live we have quite a number of intersections where there is a 4 way walk 
signal -- meaning that it is time to walk when all is quiet. (also allowing 
for diagonal crossings, which I never do). Some of these intersections 
involve 1 or more streets that are not especially busy, so you have no way 
of knowing if it is quiet because it is time to cross or because there are 
simply no cars coming through at the moment. Crossing some of these 
intersections nearly every day I have learned to judge them based on pattern 
of the cycle at that specific intersection (the patterns vary from one 
intersection to another), but depending on the time of day and how heavy the 
traffic is, this is not fool proof and I sometimes judge wrong. And someone 
unfamiliar with the intersections who needed to cross at off-peak times 
would find themselves in a literal guessing game. I've found having a guide 
dog invaluable when crossing these intersections, because in the event that 
my timing was off and a car didn't give me the right of way once I started 
crossing (which they are legally required to do), the dog would see the car 
coming and handle the situation accordingly.

Sarah