Comments on: traffic, flow, quality, signals http://malvasiabianca.org/archives/2006/07/traffic-flow-quality-signals/ Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:26:25 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 By: malvasia bianca » Blog Archive » random links: november 21, 2006 http://malvasiabianca.org/archives/2006/07/traffic-flow-quality-signals/#comment-7808 malvasia bianca » Blog Archive » random links: november 21, 2006 Wed, 22 Nov 2006 05:22:54 +0000 http://malvasiabianca.org/archives/2006/07/traffic-flow-quality-signals/#comment-7808 [...] A followup to a traffic experiments article that I mentioned before. [...] [...] A followup to a traffic experiments article that I mentioned before. [...]

]]> By: Jim Blandy http://malvasiabianca.org/archives/2006/07/traffic-flow-quality-signals/#comment-5944 Jim Blandy Thu, 27 Jul 2006 11:06:51 +0000 http://malvasiabianca.org/archives/2006/07/traffic-flow-quality-signals/#comment-5944 I liked the article you linked to on "second-generation" traffic calming. It reminded me of a study described in the Freakonomics book, in which, as part of the study, day care centers started charging fines to parents who picked up their children late. Parents immediately began picking up their children later than they had when no fines were imposed. Then the day care centers dropped the fines; parents continued to pick up their children late. The interpretation offered in the book is that the day care centers had, in effect, made explicit the value they placed on prompt pickups, and that value was much lower than the parents had expected. Dropping the fines didn't change the parents' perception of that value. The analogy, I guess, is that road markings and signs make explicit what drivers would otherwise have to discern for themselves by watching what was going on. I felt sorry for the poor day care centers, though. I liked the article you linked to on “second-generation” traffic calming. It reminded me of a study described in the Freakonomics book, in which, as part of the study, day care centers started charging fines to parents who picked up their children late. Parents immediately began picking up their children later than they had when no fines were imposed. Then the day care centers dropped the fines; parents continued to pick up their children late.

The interpretation offered in the book is that the day care centers had, in effect, made explicit the value they placed on prompt pickups, and that value was much lower than the parents had expected. Dropping the fines didn’t change the parents’ perception of that value.

The analogy, I guess, is that road markings and signs make explicit what drivers would otherwise have to discern for themselves by watching what was going on.

I felt sorry for the poor day care centers, though.

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