This is an interesting article from another forum.
http://features.csmonitor.com/environment/2008/06/25/do-traffic-laws-cause-accidents/Here's a summary:
In 2005, the New York Times described the center of Drachten, a Dutch city of about 50,000, which, at the insistence of traffic guru Hans Monderman, stripped away all regulatory traffic control features:
Not only was it virtually naked, stripped of all lights, signs and road markings, but there was no division between road and sidewalk. It was, basically, a bare brick square.
But in spite of the apparently anarchical layout, the traffic, a steady stream of trucks, cars, buses, motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians, moved along fluidly and easily, as if directed by an invisible conductor. When Mr. Monderman, a traffic engineer and the intersection’s proud designer, deliberately failed to check for oncoming traffic before crossing the street, the drivers slowed for him. No one honked or shouted rude words out of the window.
“Who has the right of way?” he asked rhetorically. “I don’t care. People here have to find their own way, negotiate for themselves, use their own brains.”
According to a 2006 article Der Speigel, the number of traffic accidents in Drachten “declined dramatically” after the area was redesigned.
“The many rules strip us of the most important thing: the ability to be considerate. We’re losing our capacity for socially responsible behavior,” Monderman told Der Spiegel. “The greater the number of prescriptions, the more people’s sense of personal responsibility dwindles.”
And if traffic laws cause accidents.....
