Started by Jonah Feld (@slow_web) ·
the crosswalk button probably isn't doing anything
In a lot of big cities the walk signal runs on a fixed timer for much of the day and the button does nothing, at least at those times. The New York Times reported in 2004 that most of NYC's buttons didn't work. Elevator door-close buttons in the US are a similar story in normal operation.
4 sources · 22 min down the hole
How I got here
- Started with
- Do crosswalk buttons actually do anything?
- Ended at
- “elevator close door button”
The Trail
- “do crosswalk buttons actually work” (google.com)
- Placebo button (en.wikipedia.org)
- Illusion of control (en.wikipedia.org)
pressing something seems to make waiting more bearable, even when it does nothing
- “elevator close door button” (reddit.com)
Keep going
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