One practical way in which the LTA can improve road safety is by
improving traffic light sequencing. The sequencing in Singapore is
dreadful (you get a green light then another set of lights 200
metres ahead turns red immediately). In fact, I don't think there
*is* any sequencing in Singapore, yet other developed countries
have it for decades.
What do I mean by sequencing? I mean intelligent programming of
lights so that if you travel at the speed limit you will encounter
a continuous run of green lights. With sequencing, traffic in
general reaches the destination faster, and the average number of
vehicles on the roads decreases. Add to that a decrease in
frustration, and fewer cars running red lights. Without sequencing
LTA is responsible for a huge waste of commuters time.
Further improvements to sequencing
* reduce prolonged green arrows in off peak periods. Such green
arrows help nobody when traffic is light, and only serve to waste
the time of traffic trying to go proceed directly through
intersections
* giving pedestrians higher priority - increase the frequency of
pedestrian lights, so that pedestrians don't give up waiting and
jay-walk instead
* also on pedestrians, don't assume they have all the time in the
world to cross three sides of a cross intersection because the 4th
doesn't have a pedestrian crossing, and don't assume pedestrians
have all the time in the world to navigate barriers and overhead
passes. The intersection of Nicoll Highway and Middle Road is a
good case where pedestrians simply give up and jay walk
instead.
