A new guardrail has been installed on the northeast-side sidewalk at the Shirogaboricho Kita intersection, where National Route 171 and the Yamate Kansen intersect.
Did you notice?
Here it is↓
It still looks brand new, as if it was just put up.
When I passed by the other day, I suddenly wondered, “When did this fence appear?” so I looked into it.
This photo was taken on September 8 last year.
It wasn’t there yet.
This photo was taken on January 15.
By then, it had already been installed.
When I checked, I was told it was installed in November of last year.
Why was a guardrail installed here?
So it had already been there for about three months.
It’s surprising how easy it is not to notice these things.
But why was a guardrail installed only on the northeast side?
“Because there are a lot of accidents?”
“Was it requested by local residents?”
As I looked at the fence, questions started coming to mind, so I contacted the Hyogo National Highway Office of the Kinki Regional Development Bureau, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
How the Guardrail Came to Be Installed
In May of last year, a traffic accident occurred in Otsu City in which preschool children walking together on a sidewalk lost their lives.
Many people probably remember it.
Various safety measures had already been taken for school routes, but in response to this accident, it was decided that routes regularly used by preschool children, such as kindergarten and nursery school children, should also be inspected all at once.
So from June of last year onward, the national government, local governments, police, and childcare facilities worked together to conduct nationwide inspections of dangerous spots along routes that children regularly use, and various measures were put in place.
(Reference material)
(Notice) Thoroughly Ensuring Traffic Safety on Routes Used Daily by Groups of Preschool Children
Across the country, every possible safety measure has been moving forward, from simple “calls for caution” to “changing walking routes” and “adjusting traffic signal timing.”
Installing this guardrail was one of those safety measures.
I was told that “identifying dangerous locations” was carried out through September of last year, and “implementing safety measures” through January of this year, so the national government and related organizations must have worked together at considerable speed. It must have been a truly demanding effort.
Behind the installation of this guardrail was the desire of everyone involved to keep children safe.
