If you hear news about a HAWK Beacon coming to your city and wonder how as a driver and pedestrian to use them, here’s a quick guide that should make it clear.
High-Intensity activated crosswalks A.K.A. HAWK Beacons A.K.A. Pedestrian Hybrid Beacons (PHB) are new and official traffic control devices that help make drivers aware of pedestrians crossing and help pedestrians make it across the road safely.
Think of HAWK Beacons as super crosswalks and their purpose becomes a bit more clear.
For motorists, HAWK Beacons help to keep traffic moving which means less overall backed up traffic in locations where people need to cross.
For pedestrians, HAWK Beacons are easy to understand because they work similar to regular crosswalks at standard traffic controlled intersections.
According to an official DOT sponsored study, HAWK Beacons are proven to reduce crashes between cars and pedestrians.
HAWK beacons are not the work of some creative city council member trying to confuse motorists but are actually canon as Traffic Control Devices in the US Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration handbook, first implemented in 2009.
The official description, standards, and operation instructions from U.S. DOT FHA linked here.
What do they look like?
How should drivers react to HAWK Beacons?
It’s simple. No lights showing means drive through them. Flashing yellow, prepare to stop. Solid yellow, start stopping. Solid red, stop. Flashing red, you may drive through if there are no pedestrians.
How should pedestrians react to HAWK Beacons?
Push the button to cross and wait until the orange hand turns to the white-colored walking sign. Start to cross with caution and continue to cross while the signal counts down. Do not cross when the orange hand appears.
Still confused? This helpful infographic and video should make it clear.
Like most things new, you’ll come across fellow people in your community who’ll probably say they think HAWK beacons are silly, confusing, and probably not very helpful.
Kindly point them to this article and remind them that HAWK Beacons help save lives and actually help traffic move along.
Do you have HAWK Beacons in your city? How do you like them (or not like them?) Let me know in the comments below.
