Watch out for the optical illusion in West Van

[Jegz]

Someone should chalk a hopscotch course over the girl to let even more drivers know its a school zone

[EmOne]

anybody seen it in person yet?
where is it exactly

[Eff-1]

There are a few misconceptions here that hopefully can be cleared up.

This isn't paid for by any kind of tax dollars.

The effect was never designed to scare or surprise you. As you approach there are several signs that warn you to expect something on the road ahead, including a gigantic electronic sign that flashes and warns you to slow down. The speed limit is 30 km/h on that block. From a long distance, you can see something in the road well before the 3D effect ever takes shape. Once you can make it out, it slowly goes away as you get closer. Eventually, it disappears as a blob on the road.

Those photos are taken from standing next to it. The driver's perspective is very different.



This was developed simply to help draw more attention to the issue of school zones. Every year we hear the same speech by the cops and school board asking us to slow down. People aren't paying attention.

The buzz this thing has generated is immense-- it's gained international attention. Never has there been more attention drawn towards this issue than in the past few years at least. And if you stand there for a few minutes, you'll see cars slowing right down. That's good stuff.

You could argue the financial cost of one child being struck by a car easily exceeds the cost put into this project. And as mentioned before, none of it was tax dollars.

[shenmecar]

quick, we need to hire a 3D sidewalk artist to draw a Pedobear next to the girl.

[Eff-1]

This article is worth reading for those interested:

http://www.bclocalnews.com/news/102399519.html

[TOPEC]

heard a discussion on the radio one day thats pretty interesting.
what if people get so used to that 3D girl and they start ignoring it?
what happens if people start ignoring it, and one day it turns out to be a real girl running across the streets?

[Eff-1]

It's obvious enough that it's not a real girl. Also the fact it's frozen and not moving lol.

The media has made it sound quite a bit more realistic than it actually was ever designed to be. You'll never confuse this thing for a real child, but it does remind you to always expect the unexpected.

[RabidRat]

i just went to go check it out. i could barely make it out in the dark, as it's not lit up or anything (i thought it would be).

i might go again this week when there's still daylight, but so far i'm struggling to see where the $15,000 went, especially when that only pays for a week of use.

[EndLeSS8]

I always slow down in school zones, but if I lived anywhere near that area, I would spraypaint the heck out of it.
It's just such a stupid idea, making driving in Vancouver even more stressful than it already is.