LTA | Jazzing Up Road Safety with 3D Traffic Markings

Jazzing Up Road Safety with 3D Traffic Markings

Posted on | 26 Nov 2021

It is a quarter past midnight as you coast down Whampoa Drive. Traffic on the street, although sparse, is slow due to the area’s Silver Zone scheme with elderly-friendly road safety measures.

Then, something blue in the distance catches your eye, growing larger and clearer as your car approaches. What seemed like a flat object at first is slowly morphing into something else.

Don’t worry, though. These aren’t eerie UFOs but ingenious 3D traffic calming road markings that appear to pop up on the roads. They were first piloted in December 2018, as part of the Land Transport Authority’s (LTA) efforts to create safer roads and to find out if motorists’ speed will remain slower over time.

Inspired by 3D traffic markings in Japan, these markings help to lower travelling speed in places such as residential areas with a high proportion of senior residents or slip roads from expressways.

Graphic showing person exercising at gym, beside a car, beside a cyclist riding a bike

Keep Calm and Drive Safely

In our fast-paced lifestyle, everyone needs help to calm down – including motorists. For over a decade, there have been traffic calming markings implemented to reduce speeds and encourage safer driving. The new 3D markings further enhance road awareness and alert motorists to slow down. Here’s how they are designed.

The Right Fit

There’s a first time for everything, and the team at LTA wanted to make sure they got it right. For example, they had to come up with a design that would come across clearly as 3D traffic markings. Next, they had to narrow down colours that would allow the markings to stand out from regular traffic signs. After months of working together and finding the right formula, the team finally had a winning design. Tadaaa!

Make a Mark

Drawing 3D traffic calming markings is no mean feat. Creating a marker involves three key steps.

Step 1:

The site surveyor picks the right spot for the 3D traffic calming marking and draws an outline on the road.

Step 2:

Hot thermoplastic paint is then poured over the template and left to dry. Due to the presence of two colours (blue and yellow), this step is performed twice.

Step 3:

Lastly, wait for the magic to happen. It takes approximately five hours to paint 10 sets of 3D traffic calming markings.

Slow Down

We have observed an approximate 15% reduction in travel speeds since we introduced these markings as part of a trial in December 2018.

No Curves, No Problem

First trialled at Whampoa Drive, LTA also expanded the markings to two expressway slip roads – PIE (BKE) to Eng Neo Avenue and BKE (SLE) to Bukit Panjang Road. With relatively straight and long roadways, both sites have no prominent curves, making them ideal locations for the 3D markings.