Distracted smartphone pedestrians on Spain’s Costa Blanca get Europe’s first road crossing warning lights

TORREVIEJA has become Europe’s first city to install warning pavement lights to warn mobile phone distracted pedestrians of dangers at crossings.

Traditional red and green lights have been put into the pavement in a pilot scheme at a crossing on Avenida de La Libertad in front of Torrevieja Casino.

37% of people surveyed in 2019 by Ponie Freno and Axa admitted to crossing streets looking down at their phone and not concentrating on the situation at hand.

The ‘smart’ system works in parallel with the traditional traffic lights on the Avenida de La Libertad crossing.

Pedestrians looking down at the pavement entering the crossing will see either a red or green light.

Torrevieja’s Security and Emergencies councillor, Federico Alarcon, said: “The lack of attention by pedestrians is increasing with more awareness of phones than of traffic.”

The new Alicante-developed safety system will be displayed at Intertraffic Amsterdam 2002 between March 29 and April 1.

It’s the world’s leading trade exhibition for mobility and traffic technology.

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