What are these little yellow boxes at German pedestrian crossings? [duplicate]
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I've been to Germany twice now: Once to Berlin and once to Bielefeld.
Both places had these yellow boxes with the same pattern at pedestrian crossings.
At first I thought they were to press for crossing, but there doesn't seem to be any way to actually press them so I'm confused as to what their role is.
What exactly are they for?
Best Answer
They are for the visual impaired people. Source
The symbol means:
2 Black Dots on top, and 1 on the bottom mean that the person wearing the symbol is visually impaired, 1 black dot on the top, and 2 on the bottom show that the person is deaf.
There's a button on the bottom:
Despite what many would think now, the button doesn’t make the light turn green any faster. What it does do is vibrate when the light turns green, and in some cases it even prolongs the time that the light stays green.
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What is the button under pedestrian crossing?
Next time you cross the road, have a feel underneath the yellow box and you might find a hidden button. It's to help visually impaired or blind people. And it is quite clever - when people feel the cone spinning they know the traffic should have stopped and they can cross safely.What is a zebra crossing in Germany?
If you are travelling on foot, you can generally also use the pedestrian crossing. Here pedestrians have the right of way in Germany, but you should clearly show that you want to cross the street. Cross the pedestrian crossing only when you are sure that the road is free or the vehicles have stopped for you.How do blind people know to cross the road?
At any given time, people who are blind or visually impaired can travel and cross streets using a human guide, using a long, white cane to identify and avoid obstacles, using a dog guide, using special optical or electronic aids, or using no additional aid.What are British crosswalks called?
In the U.K., though, things aren't that easy. Rather than deem this key part of roadway architecture a crosswalk, because it helps people walk across the street, the U.K. Department for (but really "of") Transportation calls it a puffin crossing.Road rules: children’s crossings and pedestrian crossings
More answers regarding what are these little yellow boxes at German pedestrian crossings? [duplicate]
Answer 2
It's for visually impaired pedestrians. There is a button on the bottom of the box. Some of them are vibrating and others are beeping to indicate when you can cross the road.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Kamaji Ogino, Ono Kosuki, Andrea Piacquadio, Czerrysh Ann