I oppose the wholesale applications of Audible Traffic Signals(ATS) for the
purported benefit of blind people. As a blind person, I have already learned to
adapt to traffic situations by listening for traffic etc. and would not rely on
these signals. These installations would make blind people unnecessarily
dependent on ATS since these signals may not be totally reliable and the noise
of traffic will probably drown out the ATS anyway. These ATS's would also have
an undesirable social effect in that blind people would have their own crossings
separate from the rest of the public. In any case, I do not see the value of ATS,
especailly with the high price tag of installing ATS at all intersections.
Jennifer M. Ekern
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