Pyongyang Traffic Safety Poster

Traffic safety in the DPRK courtesy of a Pyongyang Traffic Controller


from NorthKoreanArt.com

I think it's interesting how the DPRK uses traffic symbols that are not universal, but sort of look like they are. The one with the steps seem to appear on many street corners.

All those step signs are on the corners because instead of crossing the empty intersections at surface level, people have to cross in tunnels that go under the street. That's not a joke.

Jong-Il's Hair Apparent wrote:

All those step signs are on the corners because instead of crossing the empty intersections at surface level, people have to cross in tunnels that go under the street. That's not a joke.

Wow - Really??? I have not seen pictures of this. Is it part of the Metro (subway) stations??

There is the subway, but the underpasses are independent of it.

Another strange pedestrian quirk is the proliferation of underpasses in the city. Presumably in anticipation of large volumes of traffic (or a nuclear holocaust, whichever comes first), the government has constructed frequent, caverous road underpasses. Even though there is usually no traffic whatsoever approaching, all pedestrians without exception will use the underpass if it is available where they wish to cross. This provides a fascinating little glimpse into the people's relationship with figures of authority - they will blindly follow the rules, regardless of whether the rule is necessary or not. Few people anywhere else in the world would use an underpass to cross a deserted road.

That poster looks like it was drawn by a 10 year old. Are there no child labor laws in NK?

Yes, I've seen those underground entrances....wasn't sure if they were part of the subway or not. For the subway, there usually is a Metro symbol connected with it. Or they are in pavilion buildings at some major stops.

However, if you look at these underpasses, it seems that you can easily trip and fall into these stairways. Is there any reason why there isn't a fence around these low partitions?????

That ledge looks high and wide enough to keep from tripping into it. However, if it was in NYC for example, people would be sitting or resting on the ledge and could fall back in. In Pyongyang it's probably strictly forbidden to sit on it.
For that matter, it may be illegal to sit on anything but an officially authorized bench.

In theory, the underpasses make perfect sense, but only in congested enough cities to justify them. Not Pyongyang - they must be building for the future, say around 2109. New York for example is where they could use those underpasses - if they were on every corner traffic could be timed to flow faster and smoother. Although to dig them at this late stage would require relocating too much infrastructure - pipes, sewer, electrical, etc.
Maybe NK is on to something here - planning for the future. The FAR future.

The only time Pyongyang will ever have enough traffic to make these useful is after they reunite with the south and become a capitalist society with a booming economy.

catcher22 wrote:

The only time Pyongyang will ever have enough traffic to make these useful is after they reunite with the south and become a capitalist society with a booming economy.

Which, of course, will never happen.

I also read that Pyongyang builds apartment buildings that stand empty that are in anticipation of their southern bretheren returning to the North during unification and living in and accepting the DPRK as THE way to live....

Never say never. In 1980 who would've thought Germany would be reunited within a decade?