Crosswalks in busy areas shouldn't have buttons and should allow pedestrian crossings automatically as part of the cycle. In less dense areas, buttons should change the light more or less immediately to allow pedestrian crossing. Neither of these scenarios are usually the case since these intersections are almost always designed with cars as the paramount concern and pedestrians as an afterthought.
I recently visited Bellevue, WA and experienced one of the most anti-pedestrian "walking streets" I have ever encountered. Crosswalk buttons on a busy street full of shops and restaurants, yes, but even worse were the orange flags left out for pedestrians to grab and use like they are part-time crossing guards. No stop signs. No speed bumps. Just orange flags for the suckers walking instead of driving. To add insult to injury, the flags always ended up on one side of the street, making the entire project half-broken at best.
The worst part: this is their literal Main Street.
I recently visited Bellevue, WA and experienced one of the most anti-pedestrian "walking streets" I have ever encountered. Crosswalk buttons on a busy street full of shops and restaurants, yes, but even worse were the orange flags left out for pedestrians to grab and use like they are part-time crossing guards. No stop signs. No speed bumps. Just orange flags for the suckers walking instead of driving. To add insult to injury, the flags always ended up on one side of the street, making the entire project half-broken at best.
The worst part: this is their literal Main Street.