Didn't know that button was invented in Australia. Nice. In Japan you typically don't have to press a button, I think that's a good option in terms of accessibility, too.

"Singaporeans love pressing this button" NO BUT LITERALLY

I just realised how much I’ve taken this button for granted. I literally see one at the road opposite my school each morning and become so accustomed to it that only with this video I suddenly am so thankful for the system built here. I never really understood why the button would emit a beeping sound even when it wasn’t pressed yet but now it finally makes sense. Often times when I travel, it just always feels so odd not having this in other countries and the sound of the traffic light beeping just feels like some comfort reminding me I’m in my home country.

Besides the use on the Green Man +, the senior concession card also entitle the cardholders to enjoy concessionary fares on public transport (25% or more off the adult fare), discounted products and services from over 2000 merchants, heavily subsidized health screenings and apply for community clubs recreation courses, activities and facilities at discounted rates. Singapore Citizens turning 60 years old will receive an Invitation to apply.

Hi Julian 😁 as an Aussie living in Sg I have defs noticed that the city is far more accessible (in terms of ramps, lifts etc) for elderly and/or disabled persons. And can also notice the effects, with more elderly people out in chairs etc than ever saw back home. Thanks for pointing out some more aspects I hadn't noticed! 🙂

As a Singaporean, I think I can say he's pretty spot on. Singapore is home to quite a lot of elderlies, and he chose an estate where it houses quite a lot of elderlies too. Great vid.

Green Man + is a brilliant idea. We really need this in Australia. I’ve often wondered how the elderly or disabled people cope with crossings that change quickly.

My home is exactly in Bukit Merah View, I am both a driver and a pedestrian. I can totally agree with the usefulness of these features. The intentional mildly windy lanes definitely made me slow my car down. Several sheltered walkways across the roads were added last year to not only provide shade, but reduce the need to dash across the roads when it rains. Thank you for your analysis and hope you can produce more videos as interesting as this!

As a Singaporean I’m very glad that our traffic system is getting recognised. Thanks for the vid!

That fantastic that our Aussie invention is being used overseas. The green man button thing is an awesome idea however I personally would find it a pain in the ass having to get out a card to tap each time I want to use it. I get why no general button as they don't want misuse but a getting out a card can get very inconvenient

Love the Singapore content! I live in Melbourne but am going to Singapore next month, definitely will keep an eye out for these innovations along the way!

In Vic some crossings have a Puffin system installed. It's a motion sensor. While it detects pedestrians still on the crossing it stays green untill they have crossed.

Great vid. I really miss Singapore! In parts of Japan I've seen road crossing buttons that have a second, lower button for the elderly that keeps the green light on for longer so they can get across safely. So good!

Some of these features of the silver zones would be great anywhere as just pedestrian positive design!

It's pretty much what I found in Singapore. In my experience, it was by far the easiest city to get around. You pretty much don't need a car. Many things are accessible by walking (known as "Bus 11" in Singaporean slang) and their EXCELLENT bus and metro train (MRT)/light rail (LRT) system. I do love the idea of extra time to cross for the elderly and disabled people by showing their ID cards, only issue with the system is elderly/disabled foreigners are pretty much SOL.

0:28 Here in Singapore I don't think I've ever seen the straight arrow variant. It's like always the side arrow

Nice improvement on the Aussie design. I really like the raised zebra crossings because they will also help slow any vehicles down, making crossing the road a much safer experience.

I’ve lived in Singapore all my life, about twenty years and this has been a constant in my daily life. Never really thought much of it, but certainly have never or will ever take it for granted

While I’m not a senior, I’ve had the pleasant experience of experiencing the accessibility that Singapore has. While facing some walking issues in the past it never got in the way of me getting to my destination due to all the ramps around. Also crossing the road felt really safe; on top of the break we could take in the middle of it, drivers in Singapore are really courteous and will patiently wait even after the light turns green for them. In areas with no traffic light the pedestrians always come first. I think this is one cultural aspect I will never stop appreciating.

There are a number of systems that are in use in Australia at certain intersections that are similar to what you have shown (I know most states have rolled at different systems but I have seen systems in Melbourne and Brisbane). The system uses optical based cameras to detect pedestrians crossing the road, if it detects people slowly crossing then additional time will be given to the pedestrian phase. Using countdown timers like what is shown in your video actually limits how quickly the system can respond and give additional pedestrian crossing time as the card will need to be swiped before the traffic signal controller enters the pedestrian phase. The systems in use in Australia where a countdown timer is not used dynamically extend the pedestrian crossing timer without any intervention by the end user. On a side note, it isn't just the pedestrian push buttons that are Australian. The traffic signal controllers used are Australian made as well (at least the vast majority are)

Although the senior traffic timer extension system was made accessible and available to the public awhile back, I’ve yet to see one taking advantage of it.

I used to live there and I had no idea. When I go back to my parents I will keep an eye on that city. It's clever, I didn't know about the raised crossing I thought it was just another speed break. Also the buses have a platform which opens and turns into a ramp if a person in a wheel chair needs to get on. This button is on a another level tho.

As a Singaporean living for 14 years, I’ve never known the function of those utilisation till I watch this videos.

The irony in this video being about safe crosswalks and the man jaywalking at 0:05. Loving the SG content!

Haha I must have taken something I use every day for granted! I never expected something as simple as the pedestrian crossing button could be made into a detailed video. :) But do be careful when you are crossing the roads in Singapore. Drivers can be very reckless and inconsiderate. There have been many accidents, some of which fatal, all because drivers simply think they own the roads. The problem becomes really big when drivers feel pedestrians should give way to them! For example, when I was in Europe, I noticed cars would automatically slow down to let me cross even though the drivers had the right of way. That was really a culture shock me. But I really like the safety and considerate behavior. On the contrary, in Singapore, you may sometimes experience nasty shocks from drivers honking at you, or even accelerating after seeing that you are trying to cross the road.

What's also pretty important to mention is the road etiquette here, drivers usually always stop for pedestrians to cross first before proceeding themselves

Ive lived in Singapore for so long but did not notice alot of these small little touches! Great video!

I was confused I just saw our normal looking Aussie crosswalk buttons, but the longer time really is amazing, I’m young but I am not fast and have issues with speed walking so it really is cool and I hope one day we might get that available where I live.

I've never been more proud to live in singapore

Great vid as usual. I believe Japan is also innovating in ways to help their aging populating. Eg, the restaurant of mistaken orders... FWIW, I love these PB5s and recently made one into a guitar pedal!

It's missing one part. We have these buttons in Wellington NZ, and years back the two screws were removed, with a piece of unistrut placed across them. Just a little bar of metal 20mm in width that sits between the button and the blue part. It stops people from kicking out and damaging the part with the blue arrow, when they try to press the button with their foot and miss (mostly drunks). The amount of damage these have prevented is over $100k after they were put on in the mid 2000s. A fraction of the failures.

The buttons in my town, Ireland, are like the basic one you showed but since covid they now have a sensor that you wave your hand in front of. No need to press the button now. Doesn't really make it more accessible but its something.

I moved to Singapore from Melbourne about 3 years ago and I am constantly frustrated by the crossings. Although the button systems are the same they rarely have the audio during a crossing cycle. Growing up in Melbourne I didn’t realise how reliant I was on the audio side of the crossing system.

OMG YOURE IN SINGAPORE???? AYYYYY hey from singapore

Hi from Singapore, thank you so much for sharing this =)

The other clever change they made was previously, at a traffic light junction, all the lights and pedestrian crossings were in sync eg. If it changed from red to green light, the green man pedestrian crossings would also change. This was still dangerous as cars have the tendency to dash out once it turns green in their favor. So nowadays, they activate the green man first so that pedestrians can cross first and then activate the green light change for cars. This would actually alert the driver beforehand that there are pedestrians going to cross, so wait before you start to move your vehicle.

I love the singapore videos... I haven't been able t o go back in years.

Inn NZ you just push and hold the button and it will give a longer crossing time, These are usually used in areas where vulnerable people are more likely to be

Thanks for visiting...? I live in the central region, which is unfortunate because those buttons don't exist. But they did change out the buttons at the residential part, but it does not include the card tapping part. I've seen all of them before.

Thank you for highlighting this! Too often something works and we don't really give additional thought to it.

What a fabulous addition! All they need to make it perfect is another button and a bench to rest on in the middle for those who are really slow.

My favourite city to visit. This is just one reason why.

That is overthought engineering. Here in the UK, we have a sensor which detects people and doesn't time the red light out until the crossing is clear. They also have audio and visual signals that it's safe to cross and a little knob under the butten which rotates when it's safe to cross. No cards to remember, no nonsense. They just work

Really good to have you back uploading Julian!

Julien, the god honest truth is, when I'm doing deliveries In Suburbs with trams, each time I hear the ding I don't hear A tram. I hear THE tram from your intro. You made an everyday sound a audible brand awareness/familiarity marketing tactic for locals. It's a slight piece of genius.

Meanwhile here in greater Jakarta, most crosswalk buttons don’t even work 😂. Anyway, great content!

Really cool that there are crossing buttons that have card scanning, I had no idea! There are actually buttons near my house that were installed that vibrate when it's crossing time. And sometimes when it's sunny, I look at the red light on the button to see if I have to keep waiting. It's nice to know I can also rest my hand on the button and feel a vibration. I usually just look at the traffic lights though in this case. The buttons in these traffic lights are just sheet metal I think, so not nearly as fancy.

Those exist in Austria too. They beep slow when it's red and fast when it's green. The box also has braille and you can tap a button to make the box beep louder

Hey mate, Victorian here. I'm curious is this youtube thing you're full time gig? I'm impressed at your ability to travel around and capture this nuggets of wisdom. How do you support yourself if you don't mind me asking

thanks for the video! Tbh Singapore has an ageing population and the govt had been moving towards a more inclusive society in SG. SG had no natural resources whatsoever except for its own citizen.....so by investing in her own people....the resulting dividends are paying off since we could survive the Asian Financial Crisis and many other global downturn, etc. SG is not perfect but it is home.

This is fantastic. Very informative and entertaining. Nice video. Keep up the good work.

Another fact that I noticed is that if you press the button before the current green man turns red (or a few seconds right after it turns red), the next green man will actually come earlier. This only works for traffic lights for one road though (i.e. not traffic lights for crossroads since each direction will have a set amount of time), and I'm not too sure if it works on newer traffic lights. Speaking of crossroads, if you don't press the button, the light for your direction may turn green for the cars but the green man will not appear so do make sure to always press the button! Otherwise, for one road traffic lights, the lights will always be green for cars unless someone presses the button. Also, the changing of signs seems to change in 3 seconds, so e.g. if the light turns red or the turning signal just stopped, there will be a 3 second pause before the green man appears. I find it quite fun to count and see the signal change at 3 seconds haha

I stay in Singapore and I will agree! These are amazing!

In the UK they have puffin crossings that have sensors detecting pedestrians, so hold the light red for as long as the pedestrian needs. It also doesn't stop traffic if there is no pedestrian. I'd they merged that with the button of the Australian system, it would be the perfect crossing.

APS (US/CA) is also pretty good. It has a big button with a tactile arrow, it also makes a small locator sound periodically. If you hold the button down for 3 seconds, it will make a sound when it’s time to cross, sometimes with voice guidance telling you the specific street, and often have a longer crossing time. It will also vibrate the button. During the clear phase, it will speak out how long you have til the light is handed over to the cross traffic. It’s definitely a more recent invention than this, as many crosswalks do not have this yet, but it’s great to see accessible crosswalks popping up.

All these things pretty much exist in the UK, but most crossings have sensors, so the crossing waits until there is no-one in the road, and then turns the light green, and it will only allow people to cross when it senses no cars approaching. This system allows people as much time to cross as they need, but the least wait time for cars as possible, and also prevents people being run over when crossing as the light doesn't change in the middle of a stream of cars, opposed to a timer system.

They need to make the pedestrian crossing times longer in general at least in Melbourne cause on some of the large you need to run if you wanna make it before it goes red

I'm not an elderly but I always tapz my mum's senior card at the pedestrian crossing. So it gives everyone ample time for us to cross. Also at the same time, helps taxi drivers to generate a little more income "20-40 cents" while passengers in it

Hey mate! I'm a traffic signal technician. Another system we have in Australia is microwave radars mounted on the poles, they can see if someone is still walking across the intersection and will add time to let them cross with more time. I can also send you some photos of the insides of our push buttons if you haven't already seen them.

I do think the need for a specific card to get the extra time could possibly be gatekeeping this access from those who don’t have a card or can’t get one or are only temporarily disabled etc it’s a great idea, and hopefully will be improved in the next versions

Meanwhile I live in Sweden. A country where pedestrian crossings have had a slow ticking sound to enable vision impaired people to know where the button is, but the ticking is also made so that one can hear what direction the crossing is in. For people bad of hearing there is also a raised arrow on top of the box housing the button. Each of these boxes also has 2-3 buttons. 1 for normal crossing time, 1 for a longer crossing time, and occasionally one for cyclists that is quite short. (all three of course are of an appropriate duration for the specific crossing.) That Singapore requires a card to access the longer crossing time is stupid, if a normal person hurts themselves or otherwise finds themselves in a situation where their walking speed is decreased, then they too might need the extra time to safely cross. (though, the drivers of the cars should also pay attention and notice this, but some don't.) On top of this, when it is time to cross the ticking goes from the occasional once every few seconds to a few times a second instead. This makes the box for the button slightly vibrate giving haptic feedback to those in need of that. (the sound of the ticking is also a bit louder during the crossing time) When the crossing time is soon about to end, the ticking starts to go in bursts instead, half a second on, half a second off. Our traffic light assisted crossings have had everything here above for the last couple of decades. Singapore though comes decently close to a perfect system, just ditch the card and add a second button, preferably bellow the normal one since elderly people can have a hard time reaching up. (shoulder height is too high...) But out of all the different pedestrian crossing solutions I have seen, Singapore is the best second place contender I have seen so far, but they do have a few major issues. And the heavy use of medians to let people cross the street in two or more separate steps has also been exceptionally common here for a long time. Same thing for raised crossings, though this is a bit newer but still over a decade old here. (And Singapore made a beginner mistake on the one shown in the video, the yellow checked area should form a platform at the median to allow more room for people to stand. Or rather not stumble down into what effectively is a ha ha, also known as a tripping hazard...) The only thing shown in the video I wished we had a long time ago is the non straight roads to slow down traffic. So I suggest going and taking a look at Sweden next.

Singaporean student here! I did a presentation on the accessibility of Redhill (Bukit Merah) and there's really a lot to be said just on that alone :) they've really done a phenomenal job on aiding disabled and elderly persons there. Nice video on buttons!!

In Finland we have better solution: if pedestrian lands his foot on street while light is green, he has infinite time to cross.

I'm not so sure I agree that this is a good thing. This requires people with disabilities and elderly to always carry their concession card, essentially meaning that if they just go out for a walk and/or forget it, they will have a hard time crossing streets. If the time added to crossing times is between 2 and 13 seconds then just prolonging the standard crossing time wouldn't create a massive disruption to traffic flow, while it would send a clear message to motorists that pedestrians are prioritised.

I wish Singapore was as progressive with other enhancements for the non-driving population. The Green Man+, road crossings in general etc are great. But there are plenty of examples where vehicles have a clear benefit that is difficult for non-drivers to comprehend. As an example: around the Clementi area there are plenty of AYE crossings, but very few of them are wheelchair/pram accessible. This has improved in recent years but when my kids were in prams it wasn’t an option. Today they cycle but not on bikes that belong on the roads, so I still keep track of the few lifts. This is a fantastic initiative, but it doesn’t go far enough. The goal of a “car lite society” so far is but a dream. There are plenty of building blocks but we lack a bit of Integration.

This is 👌. I also can’t help also noticing the shade structure above the crossing too. A ++

Something to note I wish you addressed, is that a large portion of those with accessibility needs are not seniors and are not even middle aged. We make up a third of the total population in the majority of developed countries, and that’s without including able-bodied seniors. Accessibility friendly designs should be implemented everywhere. It’s a major issue that affects those of us with disabilities by only implementing good accessible infrastructure in areas deemed necessary, instead of implementing it everywhere. Accessibility infrastructure benefits us all by creating safer spaces and it should be at the forefront of urban planning and street design.

Here in Theremouth we have a second “secret” button on the underside of the pedestrian button box. That supposedly works like the green man without any cards at all. Does Singapore have trust issues about “not eligible” people using this feature?

Do they really need a card for verification that the cross walk user is disabled? Couldn't the same thing be accomplished by adding an "extra time" button? If the absolute maximum is 13 extra seconds, how much chaos could someone really create by using the feature when they don't need it? Just kind of sounds like some extra complexity and another point of failure. I just don't normally think of accessibility infrastructure as needing a verification system. I'm sure there will end up being people who could benefit from extra time but either don't have the card on them or never received on to begin with, no matter how simple and easy the distribution program is. At any rate, great video. They recently added some pedestrian crossing signal buttons like this (I think everything but the tactile arrow) to some crosswalks in my hometown. I am big fan. These buttons look a lot nicer to press though. Ours basically don't give way at all and almost feel more like a big piece of metal with capacitive touch than a real button.

Nice to see a video in my country! I never knew how those card sensors on top of the buttons worked. I thought they functioned more like a bus card reader, haha!

What a great idea to have special raised crossings and green +. My inlaws would be very appreciative if the same systems were here. Great vid mate.

And another function about this button is that some locals believe that pressing it continuously will actually make the green man appear faster.

I’ve personally never known a driver who’ll take off at a green light, even when there’s an older person still crossing directly in front of their car, but hey maybe Singapore works differently.

👍👍wow👍👍biggest double thumbs up👍👍excellent presentation👍👍explanation very sharp, short and straightforward to the point👍👍thanks for your useful tips and new information👍👍I salutes to you many times👍👍

Started the video around for 10sec and I subbed you instantly just because your videos are really interesting and the presentation of yours is outstanding!

there was an episode of Grace and Frankie where they didn’t have enough time to cross and were trying to push for changes. that card you swipe for more time would have been a great solution.

Since COVID the buttons have been covered up in the Sydney CBD - I never realised how much I needed the nerve-soothing therapy of pressing the button to minimise my annoyance at having to wait at the lights. OTOH, since the pedestrian lights now switch automatically you no longer have that problem of 10 people waiting to cross the lights but they’re not changing because no one pressed the button. COVID won’t be over for me till the buttons get uncovered.

I've noticed at a few pedestrian crossings here in Wales that they instead use infrared presence sensors to solve this issue. While the length of the green man stays the same, if the system detects a pedestrian still in the crossing, it will delay the cars' green light until the crossing is clear.

Thanks for featuring one of the most useful features of the Singapore roads!

I noticed in Tokyo, Kanazawa, and Kyoto that each intersection has a different crossing sound for each direction. For example, north-south crossings at the intersection have one specific tone sequence, and the East-west crossings have a clearly different tone sequence. Because crossings in high urban areas are reasonably close together and the sounds can each off the buildings, the nearby crossings in any direction have their own unique pair of crossing sounds. This helps the blind to know exactly where they are. The side benefit, is the cities sound less jarring as the tones are pleasant and not as irritating as they are not all the same.

Wow, this system is really impressive!! Well done Singapore!!

Here in NZ we have them but without the green man plus, and not all of them have the indented arrow. I really hope we do get to go on holidays to Singapore, I’d love to visit

The village I live in in New Zealand have the same Australian crossing buttons but as well as at normal height but also further up the pole for those riding horses. And in Wellington the Green Man can be a green woman, Maori warrior or even a drag queen

I always look forward to your videos, Julian. You are personable and well spoken, and I enjoy learning new information about my favourite Australian city.

I was expecting the "Green Man Plus" light to change from someone confidently striding with both arms free, to a figure walking with a cane.

I live here in Singapore and I have learned several fun fact about this humble button from your video! Good job!

My idea. A pedestrian crossing with 2 XBox Kinnects viewing the crossing and road, implementing crossing for as long as it takes someone to cross, but turning off the "Cross Now" as soon as it is clear, so no car is left sitting waiting for no one. Also sometimes delaying crossing until the least traffic is stopped too. And not turning on the cross signal if a car breaking the speed limit by a lot has passed. It would be like having a police signal person controlling the traffic. A crossing with a brain.

Hi Julian, have you come across PUFFIN detectors? These are increasingly being used in Victoria, especially at pedestrian operated signals (ie those crossings separate to an intersection). Basically the detector determines whether there are peds still crossing and increases the green time. The advantage is that you don't need the swipe card and it adapts to actual conditions.

Julian : This is the best pedestrian crossing button in the world! Pedestrian : JAYWALKS

In Japan you’ll find lots of crossings with two buttons. The lower one is not only easier to reach, but adds extra time to the next crossing. No card needed here. 😊 (Also I say “button” but it’s often just a solid surface that detects touch and lights up and makes a sound to indicate it’s been pressed.)

Great to see you on the news, we need a video about the bike

The best crosswalk button is one you don't need to press. Traffic lights in the Netherlands use cameras, multiple ground loops and other sensors to detect incoming users in all directions and dynamically adapt to safely limit wait times. They can ensure lights are always green for trams and buses, light cycles last only as long as they need to and empty intersections can turn green immediately for an incoming user. Not sure if it's currently being done, but they could also extend pedestrian cycles if a slow user is detected without any extra interactions. Cars don't have to ask permission to enter a crossing by stopping for a button and neither should anyone else.

Great explanation, thanks pal

Wait a second, you're in Singapore right now? Holy crap! That's where I live!

They had this system in Adelaide or somewhere in Australia for a while (and it was actually first) but because it was older you used some kind of key.

Love this - such a great idea! :)

What a great design and system. Thanks for the intro.

Good video, I am glad that u have featured our special mode of this crossing for our senior citizens as not many other video sources have showcase these beside from our LTA videos. Are u still in Singapore right now?

it's so heartwarming to see someone speak so proudly of singapore :")) I'm very proud of this feature too hehe 1:38 omo your glasses fogged up, is it the humidity HAHA

As a wheelchair user, what I find locally is many buttons are mounted on a island that I cannot reach sitting in my chair