London Installs ‘Sabbath Mode’ Walk Signal
Image by iStockphoto
London is getting a “hands free” crosswalk so that observant Jews don’t have to risk their lives on the Sabbath.
Until now, pedestrians need to press a button on London crosswalks and wait for a “green man” to light up to signal they should cross. But for years, this has caused a problem for congregants at one of the city’s most popular synagogues — Finchley United Synagogue. After the Sabbath services, dozens of congregants are seen waiting for a gap in the traffic that never opens — unable to press the button due to Sabbath laws.
Now the crosswalk has been outfitted with a Sabbath mode, and will change automatically every 90 seconds. Strangely enough, it’s big national news — the Daily Mail reports here on the development in great detail. And it’s got the talkback crew talking. It’s the “thin end of the wedge,” according to one commenter who resents public expressions of Judaism. Another writes that the observant should “look left look right say a little prayer and run like the devil.”
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
