"One way street" redirects here. For the 1950 film, see One Way Street.
"One-way system" redirects here. For the band, see One Way System.
One-way traffic (or uni-directional traffic) is traffic that moves in a single direction. A one-way street is a street either facilitating only one-way traffic, or designed to direct vehicles to move in one direction. One-way streets typically result in higher traffic flow as drivers may avoid encountering oncoming traffic or turns through oncoming traffic. Residents may dislike one-way streets due to the circuitous route required to get to a specific destination, and the potential for higher speeds adversely affecting pedestrian safety. Some studies even challenge the original motivation for one-way streets, in that the circuitous routes negate the claimed higher speeds.[1]
Signs are posted showing which direction the vehicles can move in: commonly an upward arrow, or on a T junction where the main road is one-way, an arrow to the left or right.[2] At the end of the street through which vehicles may not enter, a prohibitory traffic sign "Do Not Enter", "Wrong Way", or "No Entry" sign is posted, e.g. with that text, or a round red sign with a white horizontal bar. Sometimes one portion of a street is one-way, another portion two-way. An advantage of one-way streets is that drivers do not have to watch for vehicles coming in the opposite direction on this type of street.
The abstract "No Entry" sign was officially adopted for standardization at the League of Nations convention in Geneva in 1931. The sign was adapted from Swiss usage, derived from the practice of former European states that marked their boundaries with their formal shield symbols. Restrictions on entry were indicated by tying a blood-red ribbon horizontally around the shield.[3] The sign is also known as C1, from its definition in the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals.
The European "No Entry" sign was adopted into North American uniform signage in the late 1960s / 1970s, replacing a previous white square sign bearing only the English text in black "Do Not Enter". In addition to the standardized graphic symbol, the US version still retains the wording "Do Not Enter", while the European and Canadian versions typically have no text.
Since Unicode 5.2, the Miscellaneous Symbols block contains the glyph ⛔ (U+26D4 NO ENTRY), representable in HTML as ⛔ or ⛔.
One-way streets may be part of a one-way system, which facilitates a smoother flow of motor traffic through, for example, a city center grid; as in the case of Bangalore, India. This is achieved by arranging one-way streets that cross in such a fashion as to eliminate right turns (for driving on left) or left turns (for driving on right). Traffic light systems at such junctions may be simpler and may be coordinated to produce a green wave.
Some of the reasons one-way traffic is specified:
The street is too narrow for movement in both directions and the road users unable to coordinate easily[4]
Prevent drivers from cutting through residential streets to bypass traffic lights or other requirements to stop (a so-called "rat run")
Discourage drivers from cruising through a residential neighborhood (e.g. by having mostly one-way streets pointing outwards, with relatively few vehicular entrances)
For a proper functioning of a system of paid parking[5] or other restricted vehicular access (these may also use one-way treadles which puncture tires if traversed in the forbidden direction)
To calm traffic, especially in historic city centers
Eliminate turns that involve crossing in front of oncoming traffic
Increase traffic flow and potentially reduce traffic congestion[6]
Eliminate the need for a center turn lane that can instead be used for travel
Better traffic flow in densely built-up areas where road widening may not be feasible
Simplify pedestrian crossing of the street due to walkers only needing to look for oncoming traffic in one direction
Eliminate cars' driver-side doors opening into the travel lane in parallel parking spaces for parking lanes located on the left (right-hand drive) or right (left-hand drive) side of a street
Locate a one-way bike lane on the opposite side of the street from parallel parking spaces to prevent dooring
In the United States, 37 states and Puerto Rico allow left turns on red only if both the origin and destination streets are one way. See South Carolina law[7] Section 56-5-970 C3, for example. Five other states – Alaska, Idaho, Michigan, Oregon, and Washington – also allow left turns on red into a one-way street from a two-way street.[8][9][10][11]
History
An attempt was apparently made in 1617 to introduce one-way streets in alleys near the River Thames in London by The Worshipful Company of Carmen who were commissioned by the King to regulate traffic in the square mile of the City of London.[12][13] The next one-way street in London was Albemarle Street in Mayfair, the location of the Royal Institution. It was so designated in 1800 because the public science lectures were so popular there.[14] The first one-way streets in Paris were the Place Charles de Gaulle around the Arc de Triomphe,[15] the Rue de Mogador and the Rue de la Chaussée-d'Antin, created on 13 December 1909.[16]
According to the folklore of Eugene, Oregon, the use of one-way streets in the United States started in Eugene itself. In 1941 6th Ave was converted into a one-way avenue by the Highway Department.[17] Other sources claim the fad arose in relation to the disaster of the SS Morro Castle. On 9 September 1934, the on-fire SS Morro Castle was towed to the New Jersey shoreline near the Asbury Park Convention Center and the sightseeing traffic was enormous. The Asbury Park Police Chief decided to make the Ocean Avenue one-way going north and the street one block over (Kingsley) in one-way going south, creating a circular route. By the 1950s this "cruising the circuit" became a draw to the area in itself since teens would drive around it looking to hook up with other teens. The circuit was in place until the streets went back to two way in 2007 due to new housing and retail development.[18]
One-way traffic of pedestrians
Sometimes one-way walking is specified for smooth pedestrian traffic flow, or in the case of entrance checks (such as ticket checks) and exit checks (e.g. the check-out in a shop). They may be outdoors (e.g. an extra exit of a zoo), or in a building, or in a vehicle (e.g. a tram). In addition to signs, there may be various forms and levels of enforcement, such as:
personnel; sometimes a "soft" traffic control system is supported by vigilant staff monitoring
an escalator; however, the escalator can be traversed in opposite direction, by walking up or down the stairs faster than it moves
an elevator that can only be called from one floor; this is common in IKEA stores.
Two-way elevators: passengers enter from the front on one floor and exit from the back in another floor.
a door or gate that can only be opened from one side (a manual or electric lock, or simply a door that is pushed open and has no doorknob on the other side), or which automatically opens from one side. (However, with help from someone on the other side, it may often be bypassed in the reverse direction.)
Sometimes a door or gate can be opened freely from one side, and only with a key or by inserting a coin from the other side (house door, door with a coin slot, e.g. giving entrance to a pay toilet). The latter can be passed without paying when somebody else leaves, and by multiple persons if only one pays (as opposed to a coin-operated turnstile).
^Jaffe, Eric. "The Case Against One-Way Streets". The Atlantic Cities. Atlantic Media Company. Retrieved 31 January 2013.
^"Traffic Signs Manual Chapter 3" (PDF). The Stationery Office. 2008. pp. 25–26. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
^Lay, M.G. (1992). A History of the World's Roads and of the Vehicles That Used Them. Rutgers University Press. p. 190. ISBN9780813526911. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
^"One way streets". Bath and NE Somerset Council. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
^"One Way Signs: Helping Improve Traffic Flow With Single Direction Traffic". Seton - A Brady Corporation Company. 8 May 2013. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
^Matchett, Conor (5 October 2018). "Calls for one-way traffic trial after roadworks improve traffic flow". Archant Community Media Ltd. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
^Singh, Simon. "Stars In Whose Eyes?". Retrieved 10 August 2013.
^Higonnet, Patrice L. (2009). Paris: Capital of the World. Harvard University Press. p. 187. ISBN9780674038646. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
^Eno, William Phelps (1939). The story of highway traffic control, 1899-1939. The Eno foundation for highway traffic control, inc. p. 243. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
^. Archived from the original on 29 January 2016. Retrieved 24 August 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^Friedman, Alexi (6 September 2009). "75-year-old film footage shows aftermath of fire aboard luxury liner in Asbury Park". Advance Local Media LLC. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to One-way traffic.
January 10, 2023
traffic, road, redirects, here, other, uses, road, disambiguation, street, redirects, here, 1950, film, street, system, redirects, here, band, system, directional, traffic, traffic, that, moves, single, direction, street, street, either, facilitating, only, tr. One way road redirects here For other uses see One Way Road disambiguation One way street redirects here For the 1950 film see One Way Street One way system redirects here For the band see One Way System One way traffic or uni directional traffic is traffic that moves in a single direction A one way street is a street either facilitating only one way traffic or designed to direct vehicles to move in one direction One way streets typically result in higher traffic flow as drivers may avoid encountering oncoming traffic or turns through oncoming traffic Residents may dislike one way streets due to the circuitous route required to get to a specific destination and the potential for higher speeds adversely affecting pedestrian safety Some studies even challenge the original motivation for one way streets in that the circuitous routes negate the claimed higher speeds 1 One way street sign in New York City No trucks over 5 tons nonstandard lettering Cullom Ave One way signs in Chicago Illinois Contents 1 Signage 1 1 General signs 1 2 No entry signs 2 Applications 3 Left turn on red 4 History 5 One way traffic of pedestrians 6 See also 7 ReferencesSignage EditGeneral signs Edit Another style of one way sign located in Chicago Signs are posted showing which direction the vehicles can move in commonly an upward arrow or on a T junction where the main road is one way an arrow to the left or right 2 At the end of the street through which vehicles may not enter a prohibitory traffic sign Do Not Enter Wrong Way or No Entry sign is posted e g with that text or a round red sign with a white horizontal bar Sometimes one portion of a street is one way another portion two way An advantage of one way streets is that drivers do not have to watch for vehicles coming in the opposite direction on this type of street No entry signs Edit No entry redirects here For other uses see No entry disambiguation The abstract No Entry sign was officially adopted for standardization at the League of Nations convention in Geneva in 1931 The sign was adapted from Swiss usage derived from the practice of former European states that marked their boundaries with their formal shield symbols Restrictions on entry were indicated by tying a blood red ribbon horizontally around the shield 3 The sign is also known as C1 from its definition in the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals The European No Entry sign was adopted into North American uniform signage in the late 1960s 1970s replacing a previous white square sign bearing only the English text in black Do Not Enter In addition to the standardized graphic symbol the US version still retains the wording Do Not Enter while the European and Canadian versions typically have no text Since Unicode 5 2 the Miscellaneous Symbols block contains the glyph U 26D4 NO ENTRY representable in HTML as amp x26d4 or amp 9940 One way sign used in South Africa Botswana Swaziland Namibia Lesotho and Tanzania The contemporary Australian one way sign is vertically oriented but older signs similar to those used in North America are still common One way road sign used in Russia Sign used in Russia to indicate end of one way traffic No entry signs are often placed at the exit ends of one way streets A Swedish one way sign used on T junctions Some countries like Germany show text on one way signs Einbahnstrasse means one way street Canada USA USAApplications Edit Opened One way street for cyclists as part of cycling infrastructure Germany One way streets may be part of a one way system which facilitates a smoother flow of motor traffic through for example a city center grid as in the case of Bangalore India This is achieved by arranging one way streets that cross in such a fashion as to eliminate right turns for driving on left or left turns for driving on right Traffic light systems at such junctions may be simpler and may be coordinated to produce a green wave Some of the reasons one way traffic is specified The street is too narrow for movement in both directions and the road users unable to coordinate easily 4 Prevent drivers from cutting through residential streets to bypass traffic lights or other requirements to stop a so called rat run Discourage drivers from cruising through a residential neighborhood e g by having mostly one way streets pointing outwards with relatively few vehicular entrances Part of a one way pair of two parallel one way streets in opposite directions such as a divided highway For a proper functioning of a system of paid parking 5 or other restricted vehicular access these may also use one way treadles which puncture tires if traversed in the forbidden direction To calm traffic especially in historic city centers Eliminate turns that involve crossing in front of oncoming traffic Increase traffic flow and potentially reduce traffic congestion 6 Eliminate the need for a center turn lane that can instead be used for travel Better traffic flow in densely built up areas where road widening may not be feasible Simplify pedestrian crossing of the street due to walkers only needing to look for oncoming traffic in one direction Eliminate cars driver side doors opening into the travel lane in parallel parking spaces for parking lanes located on the left right hand drive or right left hand drive side of a street Locate a one way bike lane on the opposite side of the street from parallel parking spaces to prevent dooring Limited access highway entrance and exit ramps Left turn on red EditIn the United States 37 states and Puerto Rico allow left turns on red only if both the origin and destination streets are one way See South Carolina law 7 Section 56 5 970 C3 for example Five other states Alaska Idaho Michigan Oregon and Washington also allow left turns on red into a one way street from a two way street 8 9 10 11 History EditAn attempt was apparently made in 1617 to introduce one way streets in alleys near the River Thames in London by The Worshipful Company of Carmen who were commissioned by the King to regulate traffic in the square mile of the City of London 12 13 The next one way street in London was Albemarle Street in Mayfair the location of the Royal Institution It was so designated in 1800 because the public science lectures were so popular there 14 The first one way streets in Paris were the Place Charles de Gaulle around the Arc de Triomphe 15 the Rue de Mogador and the Rue de la Chaussee d Antin created on 13 December 1909 16 According to the folklore of Eugene Oregon the use of one way streets in the United States started in Eugene itself In 1941 6th Ave was converted into a one way avenue by the Highway Department 17 Other sources claim the fad arose in relation to the disaster of the SS Morro Castle On 9 September 1934 the on fire SS Morro Castle was towed to the New Jersey shoreline near the Asbury Park Convention Center and the sightseeing traffic was enormous The Asbury Park Police Chief decided to make the Ocean Avenue one way going north and the street one block over Kingsley in one way going south creating a circular route By the 1950s this cruising the circuit became a draw to the area in itself since teens would drive around it looking to hook up with other teens The circuit was in place until the streets went back to two way in 2007 due to new housing and retail development 18 One way traffic of pedestrians EditSometimes one way walking is specified for smooth pedestrian traffic flow or in the case of entrance checks such as ticket checks and exit checks e g the check out in a shop They may be outdoors e g an extra exit of a zoo or in a building or in a vehicle e g a tram In addition to signs there may be various forms and levels of enforcement such as personnel sometimes a soft traffic control system is supported by vigilant staff monitoring a turnstile however turnstile jumping is possible a High Entrance Exit Turnstile HEET a one way revolving door an escalator however the escalator can be traversed in opposite direction by walking up or down the stairs faster than it moves an elevator that can only be called from one floor this is common in IKEA stores Two way elevators passengers enter from the front on one floor and exit from the back in another floor a door or gate that can only be opened from one side a manual or electric lock or simply a door that is pushed open and has no doorknob on the other side or which automatically opens from one side However with help from someone on the other side it may often be bypassed in the reverse direction entrance of a shop an emergency exit which may activate an alarm Airports e g passport control customs baggage security Sometimes a door or gate can be opened freely from one side and only with a key or by inserting a coin from the other side house door door with a coin slot e g giving entrance to a pay toilet The latter can be passed without paying when somebody else leaves and by multiple persons if only one pays as opposed to a coin operated turnstile See also EditCirculation plan Glossary of road transport termsReferences Edit Jaffe Eric The Case Against One Way Streets The Atlantic Cities Atlantic Media Company Retrieved 31 January 2013 Traffic Signs Manual Chapter 3 PDF The Stationery Office 2008 pp 25 26 Retrieved 28 December 2018 Lay M G 1992 A History of the World s Roads and of the Vehicles That Used Them Rutgers University Press p 190 ISBN 9780813526911 Retrieved 28 December 2018 One way streets Bath and NE Somerset Council Retrieved 28 December 2018 One Way Signs Helping Improve Traffic Flow With Single Direction Traffic Seton A Brady Corporation Company 8 May 2013 Retrieved 28 December 2018 Matchett Conor 5 October 2018 Calls for one way traffic trial after roadworks improve traffic flow Archant Community Media Ltd Retrieved 28 December 2018 scstatehouse gov Archived November 5 2011 at the Wayback Machine 13 AAC 02 010 Traffic control signal legend touchngo com legislature idaho gov Michigan Legislature Section 257 612 legislature mi gov RCW 46 61 055 Traffic control signal legend apps leg wa gov Homer Trevor 2006 The Book of Origins London Portrait pp 283 4 ISBN 978 0 7499 5110 8 Penguin Pocket On This Day Penguin Reference Library 2006 ISBN 978 0 14 102715 9 Singh Simon Stars In Whose Eyes Retrieved 10 August 2013 Higonnet Patrice L 2009 Paris Capital of the World Harvard University Press p 187 ISBN 9780674038646 Retrieved 28 December 2018 Eno William Phelps 1939 The story of highway traffic control 1899 1939 The Eno foundation for highway traffic control inc p 243 Retrieved 28 December 2018 Archived copy Archived from the original on 29 January 2016 Retrieved 24 August 2017 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint archived copy as title link Friedman Alexi 6 September 2009 75 year old film footage shows aftermath of fire aboard luxury liner in Asbury Park Advance Local Media LLC Retrieved 28 December 2018 Wikimedia Commons has media related to One way traffic Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title One way traffic amp oldid 1130398357, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
