Great Britain: London transport companies introduce wheelchair-bound traffic light men

Transport for London has added a wheelchair symbol to many traffic lights across the city. Instead of traditional pedestrians, among other things, the tower of the subway station is engraved London Wheelchair user at traffic lights. There is also a version with an electric wheelchair. The symbols will be displayed at five different subway stations, operators said.

International Day of Persons with Disabilities is celebrated this Sunday. The idea came from three-time Olympic rowing champion Pete Reed. In 2019, he was confined to a wheelchair due to a spinal cord injury. “My life as a full-time wheelchair user brings with it a variety of demands that can be dramatically facilitated by better accessibility and transportation for wheelchair users,” the transportation authority quoted Reed as saying.

Germany also shows creativity with Ampelmansen

As recently as 2016, transport companies replaced traffic light men in London’s Trafalgar Square with LGBTQ symbols at the start of several Pride events. These were supposed to disappear later, but they remained.

Not just inside England The traditional traffic light symbol is often changed. Even in Germany, despite strict road traffic regulations, people like to play with new figures at traffic lights. Elvis Presley, the Bremen Town Musicians or Karl Marx – over 150 years of traffic lights, many motifs have come together in Germany.