Pedestrian Crossings
Types of Pedestrian Crossings
There are various types and combinations of crossings that can be used for pedestrians, equestrians and cyclists. The responsibility for the provision of pedestrian facilities rests with Perth & Kinross Council, as Roads Authority. The various types of facility and how they operate are described as follows.
Pelican Crossings
[Pedestrian Light Controlled Crossing]
Pelican Crossings have been around for many years and the first TV adverts starred the voice of Deryck Guyler back in 1969. Once you have pressed the push button at a Pelican crossing, the Wait lamp will illuminate. You must wait until you see the Red Man change to the Green Man, and then once the traffic has stopped you can walk straight across the road. An audible alert is fitted for the visually impaired where operating conditions permit. When the Green Man is flashing it means the lights are about to change to allow the traffic to move again and you should not begin to cross the road.
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| Pelican Crossing - Green Man |
Pelican Crossing - Red Man |
Puffin Crossings
[Pedestrian User Friendly Intelligent Crossing]
Puffin crossings are like Pelican Crossings but you no longer look over the road for the invitation to cross as the Red and Green Man are mounted on the signal pole at your Left or Right hand side.
The Puffin has been introduced because it is of use to a greater portion of the public, in particular visually impaired people. The Puffin has detectors that can tell when people are waiting to cross; this is why you must stand by the push button box once you have pressed the button. When the button has been pressed, a red indicator lights up, but you must wait until you see the Red Man change to the Green Man. Once the Green Man illuminates and you are sure the traffic has stopped, walk straight across the road. These sites are always fitted with either an audible alert or a rotating tactile cone (sometimes both) for the visually and hearing impaired.
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Zebra Crossings Zebra Crossings consist of thick black and white strips across a road with an orange flashing beacon on either pavement. These Crossings give pedestrians the right of way however they must make sure that all traffic has stopped before they use the crossing. A Belisha Beacon is a tall black and white pole topped by flashing orange globe. They appear on either side of the road at zebra crossings. They are named after Leslie Hore-Belisha, the Minister of Transport who introduced them in 1934.
Toucan Crossings
Toucan crossings are where pedestrians and cyclists share a wide and un-segregated crossing area. Cyclists can ride across – all users should avoid changing direction suddenly. Cyclists should keep their speed down and be prepared to give way to avoid possible conflicts.
Intelligent Toucan Crossings are the latest design of road crossing for both pedestrians and cyclists and have the following features:
Built in sensors checking to see if anyone is waiting to cross.
Less delays stopping traffic only for as long as it takes for people to cross the road and only when someone is waiting.
Safer, clearer signals protecting people crossing by a red traffic light until they reach the other side of the road. There is no flashing amber phase.
How to use the crossing
Pedestrians - Watch the red man on the display nearest to you. When it changes to green, a bleeper may sound and you may cross the road with care.
Cyclists - Watch the red cycle on the display nearest to you. When it changes to green, a bleeper may sound and you may ride across the road with care.
Pedestrian Refuge Islands
The most basic form of crossing is a pedestrian refuge. This is usually in the form of an island in the centre of the road to help protect pedestrians from traffic. Refuge islands allow pedestrians to be concerned with only one direction of traffic at a time. For example, a pedestrian can cross to the refuge island and wait for an adequate gap in traffic before crossing the second half of the road.
Requests for Pedestrians Crossings
If you would like to request a new or improved pedestrian crossing facility for you area, please contact: see contact details
Please provide background details, the current problem and any other relevant information. You can also approach your Community Council or your local councillor.
The assessment method for assessing sites for pedestrian crossings is based on the framework contained in Local Transport Note 1/95 (**link to attached PDF) to encourage informed decisions to be made as to whether a crossing is necessary and if so what type should b used. The framework considers:
- carriageway and footway width
- surroundings
- vehicular / pedestrian flow and composition
- average crossing time and difficulty of crossing
- road accidents
Dropped Kerbs
Dropped kerbs are used to ease road crossing for mothers with prams and wheel chairs as well as less mobile pedestrians such as the elderly, disabled and visually impaired. Dropped kerbs can normally be seen at road junctions. The Traffic and Road Safety Section has a revenue budget for the provision of dropped kerbs at junctions and requests should be made to: see contact details
