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These people have been described as "smartphone zombies" by the Verge. The Verge has a
website and does podcasts and video series about technology news. The "zombies" have
become a real problem. Now one Dutch town wants to fix the problem before it gets worse.
Officials in Bodegraven-Reeuwijk are starting a program they think may help protect distracted
walkers. The town is about 25 miles south of Amsterdam in the western Netherlands. The
Netherlands is a country in Europe. At a handful of intersections around town, they have
installed strips of light into the pavement. They call these strips "+Lichtlijn," or "light lines" in
Dutch.
The "light lines" can change color. The colors in the light lines are timed to switch to match the
traffic lights hanging above them. As soon as the crossing light turns red or green, so does the
one in the ground.
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"The lure of social media, games, WhatsApp and music is great," said town spokesperson Kees
Oskam. It makes people less likely to pay attention to traffic, though.
Not everyone thinks the project is a good idea. Veilig Verkeer Nederland (VVN) is a group that
promotes road safety in the Netherlands. They don't like the idea of the light lines.
"What you are doing is rewarding bad behavior," a spokesman for the group said.
Still, schools in Bodegraven-Reeuwijk that are near the test light lines are reportedly excited
about the new program. They are hoping it will increase safety.
HIG Traffic Systems developed the light lines. The company hopes other cities in the
Netherlands will be interested in the system as well.
Deaths And Injuries In The U.S. From Distracted Walking In the United States, "distracted
walking" has become an increasingly serious problem. The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration is a government group that works to prevent car accidents. They say 5,376
people were killed while walking in the United States in 2015. That is more than the 4,884 who
died this way the year before. Nearly 3 out of 4 of those deaths happen in areas that are not
intersections. About 1 out of 5 happen in places where people are supposed to be walking.
These include crosswalks and sidewalks.
In 2015, the National Safety Council did a study about distracted walking. They found it was
responsible for more than 11,100 injuries between 2000 and 2011.
The council warns people never to use a cellphone or other electronic device while walking.
"Distracted pedestrians, like distracted drivers, present a potential danger to themselves and
drivers on the road," said Lampitt.
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