It may not be an issue in Saigon since it’s anything but a walking city, however those of us who have lived in pedestrian-friendly metropolises are all too familiar with the scourge of zombie-like cellphone users, messing with the flow of foot traffic as they post Facebook updates and type out SMSs.
The Chinese city of Chongqing implemented a scheme to accommodate these addicts - a special mobile phone lane on which, “Cellphones, walk in this lane at your own risk” is printed in the lane in white lettering, reports the Wall Street Journal.
"There are lots of elderly people and children in our street, and walking with your cellphone may cause unnecessary collisions here," Nong Cheng, a marketing official for the group in charge of Chongqing's entertainment zone, told the Associated Press.
A similar experiment was launched in Washington D.C. earlier this year by National Geographic and the U.S. Department of Transportation has found a link between increase in pedestrian deaths and such habits.
Ironically, most phone users have been too distracted by their phones to notice the special lane:
"Those using their cellphones of course have not heeded the markings on the pavement. They don’t notice them," Nong told the AP.
Tough these walking lanes would be useless on Saigon’s sidewalks, it seems like the demand is there for those of the motorbike variety.
