Iceland artists paint neighbourhood 3D zebra crossing designed to save lives

In a bid to slow down traffic in a small neighbourhood in an Icelandic fishing village, a town council has come up with a novel approach.

A 3D zebra crossing in Isafjorour creates the impression that pedestrians are walking on white blocks suspended in the air – but it’s just an optical illusion.

The design, painted by professional street artists Vegmalun GIH, makes it appear there are three-dimensional stripes hovering above the road.

This is supposed to make drivers think something is obstructing them and then stop.

Residents hope the pedestrian crossing will function not only as eye-catching artwork, but also as a form of protection for pedestrians on the town’s residential streets.

Currently, the speed limit is set at 30 kilometres an hour, which was still deemed too quick by Ralf Trylla, the town’s environmental commissioner who was responsible for the crossing.

Mr Trylla reportedly said it only took a couple of weeks to gain all the necessary permits from the police and transport authority to paint the crossing but he had not decided if more 3D crossings would be added to the city.

Similar schemes already exist in New Delhi, India and another in south-west China.

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But other countries are taking very differing approaches to encourage drivers to slow down.

Earlier this year the British government flagged a policy to get rid of speed bumps, after research found they’re bad for the environment.

This is because cars emit higher levels of nitrogen dioxide when they slow down and rapidly speed up.

The video below, created by Gusti Productions, shows the full effect of the crossing in Iceland.