DO WE NEED TRAFFIC RULES? (COMMENT).

DO WE NEED TRAFFIC RULES? (COMMENT). Annalisa commented here that when I was helping her learn to drive, I told her that when cars were merging that they would “sort themselves out.” Here is an article about Hans Monderman, the Dutch traffic engineer who argued that “traditional traffic safety infrastructure warning signs, traffic lights, metal railings, curbs, painted lines, speed bumps, and so on is not only often unnecessary, but can endanger those it is meant to protect.” Monderman is most famous for what he did in a crowded four-way intersection in the town center of Drachten. He removed not only the traffic lights but virtually every other traffic control. The drivers—without guidance—sorted themselves out.The key was that the residents believed that the intersection was dangerous—Monderman’s goal. You may be reminded of David Mamet’s conclusion, posted on here that a director is not needed for a stage play because, to paraphrase, the actors will “sort themselves out.”