NORFOLK, Va. (WVEC) -- They are called rectangular rapid flash beacons and Old Dominion University wanted to know if they work and if there should there be more on campus.
"We actually learned a couple of very important things. First of all, drivers do yield more with these. Drivers are 1.5 times more likely to yield when these were active," said ODU professor Bryan Porter.
ODU psychologist and professor Bryan Porter researches traffic behavior. His study observed over 2,400 pedestrians, 1,300 drivers and interviewed 265 students.
"We found that, at least initially, when the campus installed these beacons pedestrians were less likely to look when they crossed the street. But that looking behavior came back a little later in our study," he said.
ODU believed in the beacons enough that they added seven more to bring the total number to 10 on campus. The city of Norfolk has expressed an interest, when professor Porter does another study, to have a look at his results.
