City councillor Matt Allard discussed his vision for zipper merges in Winnipeg and how cutting in line can actually speed up traffic.
With construction starting up around Winnipeg, drivers around the city are getting caught in long line ups during their daily commutes. Matt Allard, city councillor for Saint-Boniface, has a great idea for speeding up traffic in these areas.
"It's what Winnipeg doesn't do most of the time," Allard said. "It's merging late when there is a lane that closes due to construction."
Allard is referring to the 'Zipper Merge', where drivers use both lanes until one closes. Commuters then take turns merging into the one open lane at the point of closure. Every car lets one car go in front of them before proceeding themselves.
"You just have this orderly flow of traffic where everybody uses both lanes," Allard elaborated.
The City of Winnipeg ran a pilot program last year where they put signs up, which told drivers when to merge. It saw some success and they concluded that improvements to driver's education are needed to address this issue.
Allard called the 'Zipper Merge' a 'no-nonsense way to better traffic flow in Winnipeg' and noted that there was an immediate 40 percent reduction in the length of the traffic lineup when properly implemented.
"I get really excited when I hear about ideas that don't cost anything that make our life better," Allard chuckled. "If we all started doing this, our traffic flow would be a little better."
Fri, Apr 26, 5:00 PM
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