Bad robots

IN 1927 an industrialist named Isidore Schlesinger installed Johannesburg's first traffic light. It drew crowds of onlookers, but was short-lived: an errant motorist soon knocked it down. Today the city's 'robots' (as they are called in South African English) are still unreliable, especially when it rains. Traffic updates on talk radio include a rundown on which robots are out. Drivers must get used to dodging other cars at malfunctioning eight-lane intersections.The Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA), which manages the robots, blames ageing infrastructure and technology that is easily damaged by summer thunderstorms. Frequent power cuts don't help. 'Pole-overs' (vehicles crashing into traffic lights) are a big headache, too. On average, Johannesburg drivers damage 81 robots a month.But the biggest problem is robot robbers. Like power lines and manhole covers, traffic lights attract thieves who sell the metal for scrap. Some will cut down the entire pole to get a bit of copper wire. In one theft, caught on video, a man hacks away at a robot's cables with a pickaxe while two others stand guard, scrambling into the bushes whenever...Continue reading
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