Editing Zebra crossing (section)

== History ==
=== Etymology ===
[[File:Zebra crossing road.jpg|thumb|Zebra crossings are so named because their stripes resemble those of a zebra, though the origins of the link are disputed.]]

The origin of the zebra title is debated.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|title=The knowledge: Zebra crossings|newspaper=[[The Times]] |language=en|url=https://www.thetimes.com/travel/advice/the-knowledge-zebra-crossings-s9b8j68jj7d|access-date=2022-01-02|issn=0140-0460}}</ref> It is generally attributed to British [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|MP]] [[James Callaghan]] who, in 1948, visited the country's [[Transport and Road Research Laboratory]] which was working on a new idea for safe pedestrian crossings. On being shown a black and white design, Callaghan is said to have remarked that it resembled a zebra.<ref>{{cite web|last=Country|first=Black|date=26 November 2009|title=All aboard the road to safety|url=http://www.blackcountrybugle.co.uk/aboard-road-safety/story-20133321-detail/story.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140820204156/http://www.blackcountrybugle.co.uk/aboard-road-safety/story-20133321-detail/story.html|archive-date=2014-08-20|access-date=19 August 2014|publisher=Black Country Bugle}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=shanegenziuk|date=2013-07-09|title=A Striped History – The Story Of The Zebra Crossing|url=https://groundtoground.org/2013/07/10/striped-history-story-zebra-crossing/|access-date=2022-01-02|website=Ground to Ground|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Alfred|first=Randy|title=Oct. 31, 1951: We'll Cross That Street When We Come to It|language=en-US|magazine=Wired|url=https://www.wired.com/2011/10/1031first-pedestrian-zebra-crossing/|access-date=2022-01-02|issn=1059-1028}}</ref> Callaghan did not himself claim authorship of the term.<ref name=":1"/>

=== Introduction ===
The first zebra crossing was introduced on [[Slough]] High Street in the [[United Kingdom]] on 31 October 1951.<ref name=":0"/> Pedestrian crossings with [[Belisha beacon]]s had been in use in the UK since the 1930s, originally introduced under Section 18 of the [[Road Traffic Act 1934|Road Traffic Act, 1934]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Road Traffic Act, 1934|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1934/50/pdfs/ukpga_19340050_en.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025204920/http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1934/50/pdfs/ukpga_19340050_en.pdf|archive-date=2016-10-25|access-date=25 October 2018}}</ref> The Belisha beacon is an upright crossing marking, still required at zebra and parallel crossings in the UK, named after the Minister of Transport in 1934, [[Leslie Hore-Belisha]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite news|title=George Charlesworth|newspaper=[[The Times]] |language=en|url=https://www.thetimes.com/travel/advice/george-charlesworth-vrzrmvqt89j|access-date=2022-01-02|issn=0140-0460}}</ref>

However, with an increase of car traffic, the effectiveness of the beacons was waning; both pedestrians and drivers were ignoring the crossing. From 1949 to 1951, the then-named [[Department for Transport|Ministry of Transport]] experimented with designs to improve visibility and increase usage, until the familiar black and white stripes were introduced.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Archives|first=The National|title=Public Information Films {{!}} 1945 to 1951 {{!}} Pedestrian Crossing|url=https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1945to1951/filmpage_pc.htm|access-date=2022-01-02|website=www.nationalarchives.gov.uk}}</ref> The zebra crossing was then trialed at 1,000 experimental sites across the UK at this time.<ref>{{cite web|last=Archives|first=The National|title=Public Information Films - 1945 to 1951 - Pedestrian Crossing|url=http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1945to1951/filmpage_pc.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181011014111/http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1945to1951/filmpage_pc.htm|archive-date=2018-10-11|access-date=24 October 2018|website=www.nationalarchives.gov.uk}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=2 May 1950|title=All liked "Zebra" crossings|page=6|newspaper=[[The Argus (Melbourne)]]|issue=32,344|location=Victoria, Australia|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article22826184|access-date=25 October 2018|via=[[National Library of Australia]]}}</ref> The zebra markings are credited to physicist and traffic engineer George Charlesworth, who was the first head of the traffic section at the [[Transport Research Laboratory|Road Research Laboratory]].<ref name=":2"/>