Answer Man: I'm writing hoping you subscribe to the sentiment “there are no dumb questions.” Who are the people who provide the voices for our local crosswalks? Some are men; some are women; some sound jovial; some businesslike. The ones by Qdoba downtown audibly count down for you. The one at (I think) Walnut and Campbell even says “have a nice day!” - Paul Cecchini, of Springfield
Let me start with a question: Is there anyone out there who misses the sound of Jonathan Gano's voice?
He was the assistant director of the Springfield Public Works Department when he departed at the end of 2014 for Des Moines to become public works director.
Perhaps Gano once spoke about pot holes at a Springfield City Council meeting? Maybe he informed the council on how much road salt we had in the shed?
My point is this, Paul, you are correct.
Someone does, in fact, tell you to “have a nice day” in a recorded message at a crosswalk. It's Gano.
I heard him say it (click to listen) after pressing the button at Walnut and Campbell.
When you think about it, bidding someone a “nice day” is a fine legacy.
As best we know, Walnut and Campbell is the only place in the city where you can hear Gano's voice at a crosswalk.
To cross or not to cross. That's the question
If you're a little vague on what I'm talking about here, let me explain.
When you're walking and come to a red light you are faced, like Hamlet, with an existential question.
To cross or not to cross. That is the question.
So you then, perhaps, press a button to change the light to green.
When you do so, you hear a recorded voice.
(First there is a loud sound like a metronome.)
“Wait … wait …wait … wait … wait to cross Walnut at Campbell. Traveling south.”
“Walnut walk sign is on to cross Campbell.
(Then, at one location only, comes the voice of Gano, wishing you well from Des Moines.)
“Have a nice day.”
COLUMN CONTINUES BELOW
‘Tagging along,' he asked to record message
Gano tells me that when he worked in Springfield he would occasionally go out with work crews and pitch in. For example, on a day when they were patching potholes, he would patch pot holes.
On this particular day they were installing the crosswalk equipment at Campbell and Walnut.
“I was just tagging along,” he says.
When it came time to make the recording, he asked, “May I do that?”
He covered the basics and in the moment asked himself: “Why not wish for a nice day?”
So he did.
Did I know it was Pedestrian Safety Month?
The city oversees 141 traffic signals with crosswalk messages in Springfield, says Mike Pavia, supervisor of signal operations.
The Missouri Department of Transportation operates another 120 in the city, but as far as Pavia knows, MoDOT “kind of rolls the same way” as the city in recorded messages.
(I called MoDOT and a spokeswoman directed me to the city.)
“But I don't know if they ever did the Siri thing,” Pavia adds.
I know what you're thinking: What's the ‘Siri thing'?
I'll explain, but in chronological order — and not before wishing you a happy Pedestrian Safety Month.
Who knew? Certainly not I.
Can you trust a robotic voice when it comes to traffic?
Springfield first installed pedestrian-crosswalk buttons 10-15 years ago, Pavia says.
They are purchased from a company called Polara Enterprises LLC, in Greenville, Texas. For years, Polara created the recorded voice that came with the equipment.
Later, city employees who installed the equipment did their own recordings because the Polara voices sounded too much like robots, which made them difficult to understand.
That can be scary because, as we all know, robots eventually will take over the world. Probably by telling us to step into traffic.
He didn't like the sound of his own voice
I ask Pavia if his voice can be heard at any city intersection?
It could have, he tells me, but it is not.
He listened to his recorded voice and didn't like what he heard.
“I am kind of a country bumpkin,” Pavia tells me. “You would not be able to understand me.”
I disagree.
When in doubt, let Siri say it
Other city employees who did these installations and who, like Pavia, didn't like the sound of their voice came up with a way around it.
They used Siri to create the recorded messages. They typed out the message they wanted and programmed Siri to say it.
Since none of the city employees who installed the equipment were female, some of the city employees chose Siri's female voice as the option for “Wait … wait … wait …”
Polara got better at humanizing voices
Pavia tells me errant drivers occasionally destroy not only traffic signals but the pedestrian-crosswalk equipment as well.
Also, new equipment is bought for new locations.
The city is once again letting Polara create the voice, at least for now.
First, Pavia says, Polara is improved at creating voices that sound human.
Second, he adds, there was some proprietary uneasiness about using Siri to create the voices.
Not a barcode; it's braille for ‘Push button'
Here are a few other things I've learned in writing this.
If you press the button a second time the voice will tell you the name of the intersection and which direction you're headed.
The sticker that looks like a barcode on each crosswalk sign is not a barcode. It is words in braille. It says: “Push button.”
Also, Pavia expects technology to improve so those who do not see well or hear well can also be notified when it's safe by their vibrating cell phone.
I'll cross when Kathleen Turner says it's OK
Cora Scott, spokeswoman for the city, tells me there is some thought to asking famous Springfieldians to record the message.
Like who? I ask, via text.
The mayor? Johnny Morris? John Sellars?
“Personally,” Scott says, “I would like to hear (Springfield native and actress) Kathleen Turner tell me when it's safe to cross.”
Me too.
This is Answer Man Column No. 23.
