How it's going: "To make them barely work at all you must re-design all public spaces, and strap radio transmitters to anything you don't want killed."
Beaconization -- or equipping bicycles and pedestrians with transponder beacons that can be spotted automatically by sensor-equipped cars -- has been given the official seal of approval in the U.S., reveals a tucked away part of the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill passed on November 5. [...]
For tech companies and affluent cyclists, the future will be rosy [...] The more likely version of the future is deeply dystopian, says transport historian Peter Norton. Only the beacon-equipped will be spotted, he fears. Those choosing -- say, for economic or privacy reasons -- not to fit bicycle-to-vehicle beacons will be blamed for being hit by sensor-equipped cars.
Same as it ever was: The Invention of Jaywalking:
Local auto clubs and dealers recognized that cars would be a lot harder to sell if there was a cap on their speed. So they went into overdrive in their campaign against the initiative. They sent letters to every individual with a car in the city [...] The industry lobbied to change the law, promoting the adoption of traffic statutes to supplant common law. The statutes were designed to restrict pedestrian use of the street and give primacy to cars. The idea of "jaywalking" - a concept that had not really existed prior to 1920 - was enshrined in law.
