Effort to Add More Audible Pedestrian Signals Launched

In the 1980s, their chirps and beeps were hailed as a step to give more independence and added safety to visually impaired pedestrians.

After that initial flurry of excitement, however, no more beeping pedestrian signals were installed in Los Angeles until Thursday, when one of the devices was unveiled at an intersection in Lincoln Heights.

Braille Institute representatives and city officials said the installation at San Fernando Road and Humboldt Street signaled a citywide effort to put in more of the systems.

Santiago Meza, 43, said the device makes life a lot easier for him.

“Before, I would wait to ask someone who came around if I could cross,” said Meza, a Goodwill Industries switchboard operator. “Or I took the chance when the street was quiet. It’s much easier now.”