Great Globe and Mail tech report on “10 things the Chinese do far better than we do.” Some are pretty namerican-centric (cellphones) and others don’t take account of the fact that privacy is less of a concern in a totalitarian state (RFID-based transit cards), but overall this is a fascinating piece full of great ideas that someone should market in the west.
In Tianjin, a city of 13 million people, traffic lights display red or green signals in a rectangle that rhythmically shrinks down as the time remaining evaporates. In Beijing, some traffic lights offer a countdown clock for both green and red signals.
During a red light, you know whether you have time to check that map; on a green light, you know whether to start braking a block away — or to stomp on the accelerator, as though you were a Toronto or Montreal driver. (That’s probably why Montreal has a few lights with countdown seconds for pedestrians.)