Waverley Council now employing lollipop men at major crossings to make it safer for pedestrians not looking up from their phones

SAFETY FIRST: Waverley Council has announced a $2.3 million initiative that will see trained crossing supervisors deployed at major intersections to protect pedestrians who don’t look up from their phones while crossing the road.

The scheme, which launched this week, currently employs 47 lollipop men and women working in shifts across 23 designated “high-distraction zones.”

“Rather than fight human nature, we’ve decided to meet our community where they are, which is looking at a screen.”

The council conducted a six-month feasibility study that found 89% of pedestrians in the Waverley area now cross roads while actively engaged with their smartphones.

Local resident Sienna Pappas praised the initiative while waiting to cross Curlewis Street.

“I run a social media consultancy, so I cannot afford to not be on my phone,” she said.

“The key is to not interrupt their flow,” explained senior lollipop supervisor Joel McKenzie, 52, who previously worked at Rose Bay Public School.

“With children, you teach them to stop, look, and listen. With adults, you just accept they’re going to keep scrolling and you build your safety protocol around that.”

The council is now exploring expanding the program to include “phone-walking lanes” on busy footpaths.