I confess I emailed the chief minister of the ACT in Australias office suggesting we have our own traffic girls here and put a link to this site.

I haven't had a reply but maybe our boring polititions secretely lust for traffic girls now....

Doesn't look like they are enlightened enough yet to employ them. Australia wont be seeing this sort of traffic control anytime soon



Message from the Chief Minister....



Thankyou for your email of 17 April 2010 suggesting the use of traffic police ladies as employed in Pyongyang in North Korea to control intersections in the ACT instead of traffic lights.

Whilst this is certainly a novel suggestion, I am informed there are some fundamental differences between the Pyongyang and Canberra situations that need to be taken into account.

As I understand, the traffic ladies in Pyongyang were initially employed as the electricity supply there is so unreliable that traffic light control is not really an option. They subsequently became something of a tourist attraction.

The traffic volumes in Pyongyang are very light so the task of traffic control is not particularly onerous. However, many of Canberra's intersections are large and carry significant volumes of traffic throughout the day so the task of controlling them with police officers would be demanding and quite hazardous. Also, it would not be safe to have them controlled by traffic police at busier times of the day and then left with no control at other times.

On balance, I believe the use of traffic lights is the better option for the ACT.

Than you for raising the matter with me. I trust that this information is of assistance.

Yours sincerely

Jon Stanhope MLA
Minister for Transport.

lol - I thought you were kidding about doing that!

I like that he took the time to send you a response.

He should take into consideration something he acknowledged - "They subsequently became something of a tourist attraction" - and think about how they could be made into tourist attractions in Australia, too.
And the excuse that traffic is light in Pyongyang but too busy in Canberra for traffic police?
It's not just Pyongyang that uses them - this is from China, a busy intersection ...


So he really should rethink the subject. Australian trafficgirls in cute snappy uniforms, tourist attractions - how could they go wrong?

I have emailed our Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. He, as his days of a diplomat has been to Pyongyang in the past and hopefully will see the logic of my suggestion!!

Here's a few points of persuasion on the subject he could consider.
1. Create jobs
2. Improve tourism
3. Allow precise intersection control (Less time idling at red lights - saving gas)
4. It's a green technology
5. Calming influence on drivers
6. Beautify Australia

I sent him this (which seems to cover some of the points you suggested)

Quote:

Good day, I was wondering of a way that we could create jobs, cut carbon emissions, increase road safety and increase tourism to the Capital at the same time. I propose using traffic police ladies (much like you would have seen in North Korea) at various intersections in Canberra which may replace the need for costly and mostly inefficient traffic lights. I am sure you have noticed in Canberra new traffic lights being put up where there were previously 'give way' signs. It would have been far cheaper and cause less disruption if we had a director of traffic instead. I propose a system similar to the style done in Pyongyang, North Korea. As you have been to the city before I am sure you have seen first hand how they work. I know their electricity is unreliable which is why they were employed in the first place, but a quick look on youtube and forums around the world will show you that people come from around the world go to see them and take photos of them. They have become a major tourist attraction for the impoverished state, which for North Korea has returned what it costs to have them in many fold in tourism. Canberras traffic is relatively light compared to other countries which frequently use them like China and the USA and while putting them at major intersections would not be advisable, smaller 'give way' intersections may benefit at certain times of the day. Also, seeing an authoritative figure would get people to slow down and take notice. This would be good around Civic and other shopping centres at night where many people take stupid risks on the road to show off. The biggest hurdle I forsee is allowing the job open to exclusively women (or at least a large percentage of them). In North Korea, they must also be considered attractive, between 16-26 years old, unmarried, healthy and above 5'4 tall. With equal opportunity, this might be hard to accomplish but if our traffic ladies do not look or move similar to those in Pyongyang, the tourism part of the idea will probably not work. I dont see why it should be a problem though as its creating a job where there was none before. It may also work in a positive way for women to get people to take attractive women seriously in an authoritative manner and earn respect. To me, if people would be willing to travel to Pyongyang to take photos and videos of the way they direct traffic (a country thats not considered a tourist hotspot), then I dont see why people who would already come to Australia would not want to see the 'Canberra traffic girls'. People always go to Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne but Canberra is usually to quaint a place to bother with. Even I would love to meet a North Korean traffic lady! So I think in conclusion, it would not only create jobs (where the salary would be mostly spent back in Canberra anyway), it would increase tourism, returning some money back to the Capital, cut carbon emissions through the use of improved traffic flow and the lack of the traffic light and increase road safety by making sure everyone encounters a road authoritative figure each day to keep themselves in check. I drive everyday and can go weeks without seeing a police officer or police car. This makes it easy to be complacent. Already more people have died on Canberras roads this year than the total amount for last year. Please get back to me on what you think about this. For someone who has been to Pyongyang I would be interested in your perspective not only in their use in North Korea but on what you would think about having them here in Canberra. Thanks for your time,

That is outstanding!
You present quite a compelling and well thought out argument for the creation of the Canberra Traffic Controller. I agree with those points about safety and police visibility - makes sense to me. Also with EO it's valid as to whether they would hire only traffic women. Perhaps if the job description were traffic ladies, few men would apply.
It will be interesting to see what kind of response this recieves.


This topic deserves it's own thread - plus it's a bit offtopic on this one - I might be able to split this up. I'll check it out.

North Korea as a role model for traffic control? Seriously.....

A good idea is a good idea. Who cares where it's from?

Just look at the traffic girl of the month right now and tell me thats not perfection!

The closest thing we have now is the lollypop men and women. The men can look as rough as hell and the women can look as butch as the men. Or old and tired






Give me youthful and sexy!!!