Graffiti with extra cheese

In 2021- 7485 pedestrians were killed in traffic accidents which represented an 11% increase in deaths. The biggest factor seemed to be speeding cars that could not stop in time. Police and city engineers are trying creative ways to get people to slow down and watch out for each other. One creative answer has been found for busy city intersections… decorating the neighborhood streets. Pedestrian deaths occur primarily in urban areas. Engineering measures that separate vehicles and pedestrians, such as sidewalks, refuge islands, overpasses and underpasses, and barriers, can reduce the problem. Increased illumination, improved signal timing at intersections, and beacons that alert drivers to stop at crosswalks when pedestrians are present also can be effective. Because traffic speeds affect the risk and severity of pedestrian crashes, reducing speeds can lower pedestrian deaths. Street art is bringing more than just a feelgood boost to drab city center junctions – it is saving lives, too. In Kansas City, US, a “daunting and dangerous” intersection is one of many that have been transformed with murals painted directly onto tarmac. Average speeds at the junction were slashed by almost half and the percentage of pedestrians who reported feeling “very safe” at the intersection jumped from 23 per cent to 63 per cent. 

A study of accident statistics at 22 asphalt art sites found that crashes involving pedestrians and other vulnerable road users were cut by 50 per cent, while accidents causing injury reduced by over a third. The research was carried out by Bloomberg Philanthropies as part of its Asphalt Art Initiative, which funds art projects transforming roads, pedestrian spaces and public infrastructure. Janette Sadik-Khan, principal for transportation at Bloomberg, said: “This kind of information gives mayors, community members and national policy makers the evidence needed to show that not only will these projects do no harm, but they actually prevent harm from happening in the first place.”  Bloomberg’s scheme has backed over 40 projects in the US and three in Europe. The joint study of 22 different U.S. test cases revealed that arts-driven transportation projects produce, among other outcomes, a 50% drop in the rate of crashes involving pedestrians or cyclists, a 37% drop in the rate of crashes involving serious injury, another 25% drop in road rage incidents between pedestrian and motorist, and a 27% increase in drivers yielding to pedestrians who have the right-of-way, suggesting tremendous public health and safety benefits overall. Adding color to curbs in Baltimore, Maryland, prompted drivers to yield to pedestrians with the right of way 41% more often.

Humor artists

His child drew a horse.
The artist asked, “You drew the horse wrong.”
The child replied, “How did I draw it wrong?”
The artist said, “Why does the horse have wings?”
The child replied, “Why can’t it have wings?”
The artist said, “It isn’t a horse if it has wings.”
The child replied, “Then why did you call it a horse?”

Word on the street is
Graffiti

Whenever my artist girlfriend is sad, I let her draw things on my body.
I gave her a shoulder to crayon.

I feel very strongly about graffiti in toilet cubicles.
So I have signed a partition.

Today I met a graffiti artist…
His name was Mark Walls.

October 18th Birthdays

1956 – Martina Navratilova, 1951 – Pam Dawber, 1984 – Lindsay Vonn, 1985 – Freida Pinto

1961 – Winton Marsalis,  1960 – Jean Claude Van Damme, 1988 – Zac Efron, 1992 – Tyler Posey

Morning Motivator:

Learn from the mistakes of others.
You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.

Here are some traffic stoppers