The City Officials Reacted To Our Videos

[@aaronlee8334]

The signs to the castle would be a good thing for visually impaired people who wouldn’t be able to see the castle at a distance. I wouldn’t say they are useless.

[@S_Roach]

Or on foggy days.

[@Warwipf]

Also maybe I'm not sure if there's more than one castle in Prague and/or I don't know what that castle over there is called.

[@thatsawesome2060]

As a foreigner, my first thought were that a big church, but then hey the signage show castle, then I kinda owh that it.

[@idontwannatypeaname]

​@@S_Roach very good point

[@gregmumbai333]

@memphis diplore This point makes no fucking sense. Yes asking people for help can be a good idea that doesn't mean we remove all the signs and maps because people should just ask for help.

[@LednacekZ]

those brown signs do not point to the castle, they are street signs that help you to navigate towards the castle. You are not a pigeon, so it is useless to know just the general direction and fly there. If you follow the signs you will get to the castle, by foot. You would be surprised how hard it is, to find the way towards something if you are not local.

[@mrkv4k]

:D There is a literal pedestrian highway, which can't be missed. You are not a pigeon, but in this case, you really don't have to be.

[@galaxspace1]

Sure, but you are so far from the castle that there is no possible way going straight towards it wouldnt be the fastest path lol

No, those are just cover story for the citylight advertisements.

[@Pidalin]

Praguers are always going in general direction and "fly there." Some fence or highway can't stop you, it's part of Prague culture. 😀

[@simonp37]

Google Maps works fine too 😀

To the pedestrian lamp button - there were some researches where it was proven that pedestrians will wait for the green light more patiently when there is a button to call the green. Whether if it changes the waiting time or not. To the tram bellows - they wear out quicker when they are leaned onto. And there ia a risk of falling out when it rips. To the metro doors - they are operated by compressed air, so in a system malfunction or an accident they might open without notice. And then you fall out. To the mayors billboard - at least they are not in the basement like in the book Douglas Adams: Hichikers guide to the galaxy. :)

[@Alphoric]

Surely the tram and metro is purely for protecting the companies from being sued if something happens not to stop it happening as if that was there true intention they’d stop it from happening it’s the same with no smoking signs if someone does it and the building burns down somehow then they get their insurance

[@Pidalin]

At least button works and it shows "waiting," not like in Poland where I have to hit it hardly like 10 times to show "waiting" sign so it just makes me more angry and I will definitely go on red. 😀

Exactly. And most of these things where there's potential for injury have seemingly "pointless" signs because then it's just your fault if something happens.

[@rybaluc]

In Prague? Only historical metro train cars still might have fully pneumatic system. They not have locking mechanism and it held by pressure in pistons itself. But most of them have fully electric door systems with locking. I cannot recall however if there were electropneumatic systems somewere installed too.

[@Alphoric]

@ like a don’t touch sign on a transformer

[@Tizzandor]

fun fact about those push buttons is, that depending on the time of day they actually do something. in the evening or in the middle of the night, where traffic is not high or it's unexpec that big amounts of traffic would be disturbed, they actually can flip the lights immediately source: I tested it on different hours of the day and night on multiple traffic lights-even at 2 am

[@mateuszsmarz3045]

i think they vibrate for blind people to know when is green light

[@romainsavioz5466]

@@filevans 🤦‍♂

[@romainsavioz5466]

there is often a weight detector that detect if cars are arriving

[@romainsavioz5466]

@@filevans 🤦🏻‍♂️

[@JR-mh8vn]

does you guys have pedestrian lights that make a noise when you push the button? Cause in the Netherlands we do and that is litteraly the only use from it, its for the blind people to know when the light turns green in my country it makes a tikking noise when its red and a faster tikking noise pluse some different sound when its green. Iff you guys dont have that then how do blind people cross the street without help in your country?

[@bazoo513]

Re: leaning on the metro door or that "bellows" or "accordion" (not "harmonica" - in English that's the small instrument you hold to your mouth): the former might open, because of a malfunction of the control mechanism or the door themselves, while the train is in motion; the latter might simply tear or pinch you. The likelihood of either is very low, but the operators want to avoid liability in a very unlikely event that somebody gets hurt. So, go on leaning (I do), but we are doing that at our own risk. Re that "redundant" arrow pointing to the Castle: come on, Janek, you can do better than that. All those brown signs have a standardized design that includes an icon, image or pictogram, text (usually in several languages) and _arrow._ So what if the direction is obvious - does that arrow hurt your eyes? Re advertising space on screens in metro passage unsold for _four years_ - now, that is totally weird. Perhaps that company should rethink their pricing strategy. Re: empty sightseeing bus: I bet that is one of those "hop on, hop off" "lines" that have fixed, advertised schedule. Trams go on schedule even it there is nobody at their first station Re: those screens on the city hall - having too many of them is better than having none, and I guess they display the same content as their web page. They were probably put up some years ago, when not everyone had a smartphone with a browser. You know, transparency and all that. Now, that "solutions" for the broken public toilet and benches staring at a vendor's shack are just hilarious. That fake "let me cross" button does serve a purpose: when you press it, it _seems_ that you were waiting less. Both pedestrian and cat traffic it probably intensive enough at all times of day and night that _actual_ measurement and reaction to induction loops and buttons would serve very little purpose.

[@stan9682]

Agreed with all your points, and additionally about the advertising space: an advertising company doesn't only own a few screens in 1 location, they might still run a profit on their own advertisement if it's a popular place. I agree that it's weird for them to use all screens, but advertising for yourself as an advertisement company surely isn't pointless.

[@EtoileLion]

@@stan9682 After 4 years, you'd think they'd look to move the screens if it wasnt actually selling *any* advertising, but maybe its a contract thing - "We give you space, you are required to run ads for the term of the contract etc..." and simply noone wants to advertise there. Feels like SOMEONE would want advertising space in a public transit location though. Who knows.

[@Tomahawkklein]

I was actually going to comment about the bellows and the door as well, but I'm glad to see someone else already done it

[@Humulator]

pedestrian and cat traffic love the button!

[@bazoo513]

@@Humulator Isn't it good when a typo elicits some chuckles? (It took me a while to get what you are talking about. i won't edit it.)

[@Alphoric]

Your videos are the best advertisement for Prague possible like if there’s any European city I’d go to it’d be Prague simply because of your videos

[@kaynkayn9870]

It's the opposite for me. The police corruption and scam, unless they do something about it I would avoid it like the plague.

[@Alphoric]

@@kaynkayn9870 yes but you know it’s happening in Prague and the signs of the scams like it’s better to be aware and be able to look out then not be aware and get scammed The only way to avoid being scammed is if you know about the scam and this channel helps show people what to watch out for And they are doing things about it but the government can’t help unless they know it’s happening so it goes back to the awareness

[@MrWolf-xk8sl]

Yeah totally not because of cheap hookers and beer... totally not!

[@neggroplease]

I actually went to Prague a couple of weeks ago because of their videos.

[@Alphoric]

@@MrWolf-xk8sl just find a girlfriend who works in a pub

[@genesis697]

The "useless" button for the crosswalk is actually not useless because studies show that it makes the pedestrian feel better. The belief that it is doing something is is the purpose it self. It makes people happy to press buttons. A lot of these kinds of buttons are around the world

[@inisipisTV]

They’re actually useful during late night hours where there is minimal traffic and most Traffic lights are in long Auto mode and a person can press the button and it would really turn green and stop cars from crossing (though these late night low traffic rate does promote jaywalking, the button is useful to the elderly and the disabled to safely cross the street at night since most drivers don’t expect pedestrians at that time so then to be more lax in looking out for them). Of course during day time and specially in rush hour these buttons are useless, since Traffic management must keep the cars from piling up the road.

[@SquareNoggin]

​@@inisipisTV So wait, you think they're functional at night but in the day they do nothing? The other commenters seem to imply that they don't do anything, night or day.

[@bonbonpony]

It's basically the same psychological trick as with elections :J

[@SquareNoggin]

@@bonbonpony word

[@kamo7293]

so it's a psychological scam?

[@maksimmaticic8079]

As far as I know, those pedestrian light buttons exist mainly for the night hours. In Zagreb for example, nighttime traffic light regulation favors cars and when pressed, lights almost momentarily turn green for pedestrians. It also beeps in order to signal blind people whether it is safe to walk or not :)

[@stanislavbandur7355]

mostly they serve as psychological support for pedestrians, most of them does not work, only calm down pedestrians which wait for their tun on road.

[@Stampyboyz]

⁠@@stanislavbandur7355similar, it's using the placebo effect to make you think the wait is shorter than it actually is, at least in the US many cities had functional ones (that made the wait faster) but didn't maintain them leading to almost all of them now being broken

[@KickassUncle]

Janek, I asked a Traffic Engineer here in Warszawa and the crosswalk buttons do work, but only outside of rush hours.

[@thatLukeKneller]

also they work to let people know they've been heard and it will change for them.

[@jackitlondon]

Spot on. It'll be a fixed plan as if it's that busy with tourists then having it regularly appear will prevent them getting frustrated and crossing on red...

[@Beckford4000]

@@thatLukeKneller when the "wait" sign is lit up, people still press the button and after 30 seconds of waiting, they press the button again. So, they don't feel "heard". There should be no buttons, only automatic crossings, because people cannot be trusted with pushing buttons.

[@ronrolfsen3977]

@@thatLukeKneller Indeed, having such a button is so standard that people expect it. So they might be placed even when it does not really do anything. Otherwise there is a change that people just start to cross, thinking it might never change.

[@mouseclick92]

Regarding the Charles Bridge, it's very common to disable the stop light botton on crosswalks in city centers due to traffic control. If the button would work, it would greatly reduce the amount of traffic being able to go through. They often just leave the botton there as it gives the pedestrian a sense of control and lessens the likelyhood of them just walking over on red :)

[@DjesonPV]

If I would press a button and wait more than 20 sec, I would cross on red. Hopfully I live in cities where those buttons work or pedestrian detection

[@TheBayru]

​@@DjesonPV The maximum waiting time for greenlights is usually set at 120s in the EU, so you're six times too impatient to live there.

[@DjesonPV]

@@TheBayru I found a study from the Cerema in 2016 "La règle des 120 secondes" (french), where they study redlight length duration impact. From the study on pedestrian : "We observe crossing on red of 64% with short waiting time (40 seconds) and about 80% with longer waiting time (100-300 seconds). It exist an acceptabilty and credibily threshold of the trafficlight, beyond which pedestrians attempt to cross as soon as possible, regardless of the color of the light. " So I'm not impatient, I'm part of the majority of people.

[@lykiaookami6070]

yeah here in Germany I've rarely ever seen a traffic light actually be triggered by the button. Stopped pressing it when I was 7 and the lights still turned green whenever I waited patiently enough - even if that was sometimes 2-3minutes.

[@raym02]

@@lykiaookami6070 many of them stay red for pedestrians if u dont press and go thrue the next cycle

[@spicycatsandthings]

the city hall with the information available is a good thing. ‘sunshine is the best disinfectant’ is something we say in the US to indicated that transparency in our government fights corruption

[@simonp37]

But it's also available online. Or you can request information from the city hall. I don't think we need 5 screens right next to each, on the street :D

[@Darwinek]

Most of the smaller towns have the information boards in good old analogue form in front of the town hall, and online of course.

[@spicycatsandthings]

@@simonp37 Going online excludes people who don’t have that capacity. I think it’s a good thing regardless.

[@spicycatsandthings]

@@Darwinek That’s good that all of that is openly available. That’s something to be proud of, many cities here do not have that kind of access. your government is doing right by you

[@Darwinek]

@@spicycatsandthings It's a legal requirement for all municipalities. They have to do that.

[@cijmo]

I think the castle sign is not so much to identify it but "this way to the castle." I used to live in Istanbul and we'd ask "can you get to (place) from here?" Oh sure we could, but one time we had to follow this little narrow path, up a 200 year old stairway made of stones and up onto a freeway to cross. Another time we had to go down a back alley where merchants dumped their rotten vegetables. There were more accommodating routes to those places but we had to find them for ourselves. So you could SEE Galata tower from where we were but it was a smelly walk of dodging rotting produce.

[@youmaybebusy]

2:15 Funnily enough, those thing DO have a use. In general people tend to be more likely to wait for a longer time, if you give them some perceived agency over the situation. Meaning they press a "useless" button and then are less likely to just 'walk real quick' over a red light, possibly disturbing traffic or worse. Easy to set up, not a great impact, but in big numbers the statistics make a difference.

[@yup9451]

Also, in the Netherlands most of the lights have sensors, so you normally don't even need to press the buttons. At night they're useful though as the walk lights won't turn to green as often, so they do have a use. I'd imagine the same for Prague

[@ScouterIkki]

In winnipeg (Canada) some don't change the light faster, but they do make it last longer on the crossing direction.

[@idulus]

I actually kind of like the screens you showed last. Though I agree, that it is a waste of money to have five of them, I think it is very cool, that your government has to be so transparent with everything. =)

[@S_Roach]

Those screens look like a case of a big push, that then had little follow-through. I suspect all that information is available on the city's website, and anyone really wanting to know just checks there. But, yeah. Five screens? Four more people lost their view, and much of their natural light, then really needed to.

[@Darwinek]

With the way how public money is handled in the Czech Republic, I am surprised it's only 5 screens. :)

[@Radi0he4d1]

better yet, in America sometimes they DO work and the cross light will not change if you don't push the button

[@bruhgamingnl1315]

@@Radi0he4d1 Which is how they should work, just like in The Netherlands, and sometimes we even have induction loops for bike lanes/bike roads, eliminating the need for crossing buttons when crossing the road.

[@devilsadvocate2643]

"I think it is very cool, that your government has to be so transparent with everything" that's sweet but extremely naive, especially in a post soviet country.

[@WhereWhatHuh]

5:00 -- I'm sorry, Janek, I must disagree. Those signs are not there to prevent you from leaning on the folding bellows or the doors. It is to prevent you from suing the city if you manage to hurt yourself while do so. Without those signs, you could argue that the city was negligent; with them, the city can say, "Well, we told you not to do that." This is also why there are so many safety stickers on ladders.

[@offgrid-bound]

Hilarious ! This video made me a tiny bit nostalgic about Absurdistán, which is how I express love for the country of my origin. There was an article some years ago in a local magazine where I live, about a Canadian couple visiting Czech Republic. He was doing some business, she was an avid reader and Franz Kafka was one of her favourite writers. After about a week in Prague, she proclaimed “I always thought Kafka was a genius, but he was just a keen observer of reality”. Honzo, jako obvykle, velice zajímavé a zábavné!

[@moth.monster]

As an American, truly public bathrooms fascinate me. Here, you have to find a store with one.

[@Posiman]

In Europe stores usually don't have them (only big shopping centers do). You have to either find a public one or go to a pub, order something little and use theirs.

[@CyrilJap]

No public bathrooms in stores.

[@LSOP-]

Heil capitalism.

[@eliseumds]

You'd be truly fascinated with Vienna then. I have never seen so many public bathrooms in my life. Australia is very decent too, I remember seeing those Japanese toilet bowls in the middle of a forest during a hike haha

[@CRneu]

It heavily depends on where you're at. Rural western US towns have plenty of public restrooms. Trailheads in cities have restrooms. Transit centers generally have restrooms.

[@LeReferee]

2:15 These buttons are usually useful only during nighttime. During the day, the crosswalk and the road are very busy so it is kept timed. During the night, the crosswalks are less busy, so you'd let the cars pass by default, and stop them when a pedestrian requests it.

[@Veaseify]

The other annoying thing about getting to the Castle is tourists think that Hradcanska Metro stop is right outside the castle at the the top of the hill - they even have a graphic of the castle on the Metro map for it. When you get off the metro though it looks like you are in the middle of nowhere because you have to cross the road and walk through the rear of some buildings to get to the street behind the castle that you need to be on.

[@burkeiowa]

If you want us to be fluent in Czech, it might help to have the lesson at the beginning. Then, when we see the word throughout the video, or you might use the word a few times within the video, we will have reinforcement of what we just heard and saw. If we hear and see it multiple times, it would help more than when it's a last-minute mention. It was only you saying "fluent by now" that made me think that the shifting of it to the start could help out more. People learn through repetition and encountering language in context (visually, the situations, etc.) I like to learn languages, but haven't retained most words you've mentioned at the end of your videos. I'd have to double-check (or double-Czech) old videos to learn the words all over again. But repetition in contextual situations should help.

[@OntarioTrafficMan]

Reklama might be a good work for this episode. That's the word I learned, in any case (easy to remember because it's similar to "reclame" in French and Dutch)

[@BrightNightmares]

@@OntarioTrafficMan Its also "Reklam" in Swedish.

[@sonickrnd]

@@BrightNightmares Same in Russian.

[@michasreisefieber]

I think those information screens at the city hall are really cool if they work properly or if they have a search function. For example: Years ago, I saw at our local court that they have a lot of boards behind glass, where they put out writings to people they want to reach for anything but they don't have the current adress, but by law they have to give out certain informations. So if you homeless for example you can go to there and watch at the board if there is a document for you. If you found one, you can read it or go to the office and ask for a personal copy. But you have to work along all the glass frames to look if there is something for you. If they had such an information system where you maybe could search by your name or a topic you could find informations much quicker and they did not had to print out all the letters and pin them at the boards.

[@MalixPL]

The "do not lean" sign in the subway is here for many reasons. 1) Safety - to not fall of when doors open at the station, or when somebody uses emergency opening while train is moving 2) Maintenance - when leaning, you're pushing doors way they dont like it - they're supposed to move on the side of the train, not be pushed/pulled from side, leaning makes much more tension to the door mechanism, also could make sensors think that the doors are open and show it to the train operator.

[@ek.74.914]

have you tried calling the advert company and seeing how much they want for the metro boards?

[@stephenbornholtz661]

Yes! New campaign like the Honest bells.

[@realxbeaston]

have you ever thought about that the advertising company is a coompany like any other as well? They also need advertisement.

[@Manuel-ie7pr]

5:01 The signage is there and in other cities' metros to prevent possible accidents when the door opens and the passenger leaning against it does not expect it.

[@JaysonStork]

I love the distinction about smoking vs navigation. Also the humor, nice throw backs

[@ek.74.914]

There needs to be more no smoking signs not less since the smokers/vapers still just smoke anyway

[@boomerix]

@@ek.74.914 In central Europe signs are more treated as guidelines, just like red lights at pedestrian crossings.

[@louisehageman3388]

I am in Prague right now because of your videos and I'm loving every single minute of it!

[@auadisian]

The purpose of that sign is to teach you the meaning of 'Prague Castle' in Czech and German

[@JxDGT]

"Do not lean on the doors" in the metro is actually important, as in some stations the other set of doors opens (e.g. Hlavni nadrazi), therefore you can fall back if you don''t notice it

[@AlxzAlec]

3:35 They are telling you the names of the castles. Some people wouldn't know the names of it. I don't find this pointless.

[@JasperNLxD]

Well, on a foggy day you can't see the castle!

[@YoursUntruly]

That “harmonica” in the middle of the bus, is an accordion. 😂

[@angelao1723]

Where I live the crosswalk buttons do not make the walk light come faster either but they do extend how much time you have to cross the street.

[@HowellQ]

Metro door text is probably legal obligation, in case someone leans on a door that opens and they fall. It tells the passenger not to do it therefore they cannot sue, or something like that.

[@leeroyjenkins9667]

As a Tram Driver i can assure you that these stickers are necessary, to safe the Tram Company for prosecutions made by People who hurt themselves because they lean on the binding Parts. And i can imagine the same is with the dors, or it is there because of light sensors, that check if there is a person in the door area

[@adilmzese5346]

Almost all of these seem useful as a person who has never been to Prague. Some r useless yes. But as a tourist some of these things are useful and I see myself using if I ever visit.

[@SirShrimpey]

About the traffic stop button, did you test it during the night hours? Those buttons often do not change the behaviour of the traffic lights during the rush hours. However, their main goal is to instantly change the lights in the night hours when there is no incoming car traffic detected. So that when there is absolutely no traffic in the night, you don't have to wait those 55 seconds.

[@AlxzAlec]

Amazing how you are actually helping change your city for the better. I will visit Prague in around a month. I used to watch your videos for entertainment, but now they are actually getting useful. Thank you!!

[@bartomiejkowalski3727]

This is not his City 🙈😂. He is not From Prague

[@AlxzAlec]

@@bartomiejkowalski3727 Please explain to me how on earth it matters whether he is born there or not..

[@ironclear56]

About the pedestrian cross walk, the button is indeed not doing anything during day, but is useful during night (when the light switch is not automatic). So there’s actually a point to put buttons even on the most used crosswalks

[@ElectariumTunic]

The bendy bit of the tram is only there to protect the interior from weather. While they may have made it with safety factors, they do not take responsibility if it's slightly damaged, you fall through, and you get sliced beneath the wheels. Same thing with the doors. Sometimes something break, so that the doors can be opened with just a push (or by the body weight of someone leaning on them).

[@JhonB77]

The traffic button does serve a purpose. People on average wait longer for a red light if there is a button. So it prevents people from crossing the road illegally.

[@michalmarcin]

Regarding public information screens on the city hall building: I'd suggest reading Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; it explains why they need it on the first few pages.

[@numeristatech]

The bellows warning in the trams is there because someone probably got pinched in the past, and some of the bends (going up to the castle if I remember correctly) could get you hurt if you got caught.

[@johnkitchen4699]

I love your videos. Best videos on a single city in the world! You deserve an award. This one made me laugh so much.

[@Gibby27]

As a Liveleak consumer i must add. DO NOT LEAN ON THE DOOR OR THAT ACRODIAN THING

[@KevinKvnk]

I do think the No Smoking signs are important. It's funny now until someone does smoke and the fire alarm goes off and the whole station needs to be evacuated for hours. Disrupting thousands of people their travel schedule.

[@S_Roach]

No smoking signs, coupled with smoke detectors, also coupled with very targeted automatic fire suppression systems, (with UV dye), might be the way to go. Use an IR camera to locate the hotspot, to better aim the "fire suppression system". At least there wasn't a functioning, and in use, ashtray to go with those five no-smoking signs. That's what I thought he was about to show us.

[@ritchiemims8160]

Looking forward to visit Prague this coming summer, With love coming from Seattle Wa. Thanks for all your help!

[@Zapfentastic]

1:06 could be returning from somewhere without passangers i mean its still a bus you can ride, tourist or not i guess 2:39 could be for blind people so they get an accoustic signal 3:45 fog 3:54 its for safety, tram makes a turn and harmonica part can squish something so its not useless either 5:10 yes, something can happen to you, thats why it says not to lean against it, be heavy and you might break the doors, they are not built for pressure but to open and close fast and many times over reliably 9:09 its a computer... just because you looked up this specific piece of info doesnt mean its there for exactly and just this purpose

[@formerlyinpragur4736]

and another point, this is the narrowest part of the tram, by standing there you are blocking the passenger flow.

[@NorroTaku]

agree on all but the last they could have that stuff on a website and just put up a sign and QR code to the website and maybe a person inside that can print it out for you if you dont have a phone

[@fadetounforgiven]

About those "useless" buttons on traffic lights, there's a point to that. A few years ago there was an accident on a pedestrian crossing with traffic lights in a city here in Spain. A car crashed into two pedestrians and, long story short, there was a trial. A policeman who got to the scene was called as a witness. He was asked if there was some kind of record or something so they could know whether the pedestrians had pressed or not the button. His answer was... a bit of surprise: he said that not only that information couldn't be known, as there was no record of whether people pressed or not the button, but also pressing the button was pointless. It turns out it's some kind of placebo effect. Some of those buttons are installed but they don't work or, otherwise, the traffic nearby could be affected. That is, they have the area traffic lights programmed in a way that traffic would go smoothly (...hopefully) and if pedestrians were to affect those traffic lights, it could turn into a mess. Mind you, if they're not going to work, why installing them there in the first place? but that's maybe poor planification or who knows. And, also, maybe we've all seen these buttons at traffic lights that, if you press them once, they actually work and change colors, but they don't work if you press them again "too soon" after cars have started moving again.

[@WeWillAlwaysHaveVALIS]

It's been over twenty years since I last visited Prague, would love to go back. It really is a beautiful city and a wonderful place to visit.

[@guyjperson]

I went to Prague many years ago. Loved it. Your videos are drawing me back. The "No leaning" signs in the articulated bellows and on the doors are there to prevent liability. If someone tries to sue because they somehow got pinched by the belllows, or because the doors fell open, the Line can point to the sign to show they were doing something expressly forbidden. Mystery solved.

[@luki007m1]

Coming to Prague tomorrow for 2nd time in life just because of your awesome videos :D

[@PovilasPanavas]

about traffic light button for pedestrians in other countries. Many of them do nothing during the day where priority is to keep car traffic at the "normal" rate. But they act during night or evening. Some of them literally make a green light to blink indicated it will turn red in order for pedestrian crossing go green.

[@LednacekZ]

info panels are required by law, so that general public is informed of what the city does. Freedom of information. Just because the public does not give a damn about the city does not mean that city can do it without the means of scrutinizing. Why the hell are there 5 of these, i have no idea. Probably, the cousin of someone was installing them and said that if they buy 5, she/he will give them a better price.

[@BenjaminBroekhuizen]

I can see the point of making sure the information is available, but having digital equivalents of notice boards, especially in this quantity, seem a bit of an odd design choice. Of course, now it's time for The Honest Guide to submit a question on how much these notice boards cost, so people can find out this information on the notice board.

[@LednacekZ]

@@BenjaminBroekhuizen maybe the info is already there. he just has to check.

[@BaronDean]

The smoking signs were probably necessary as the Czech republic was the last to implement the indoor smoking ban in 2017. Looking at the data in 2020, 30.7% out of a population of 10,708,981 in the Czech republic were smokers, meaning over a quarter of the population would likely have benefitted from the reminder. *This data excludes smokeless tobacco use*

[@mariuscg]

Just by seeing the title, I can say it took 'em a while 😁

[@seanet1310]

The pedestrian crossing buttons not function is common accross most large cities around the world, at least during busier hours. A lot are functional for a few hours in the early AM e.g. 2 to5 am. Other than that, it makes people feel good to have the allusion of control

[@FreekVanDerWand]

The Tram thing: I think its because of legal reasons: if someone gets hurt: the city told them not to lean there so they can not be sued.

[@sirokorozchodnyautobusak3238]

In Europe you can't sue for anything you want...

[@FreekVanDerWand]

@@sirokorozchodnyautobusak3238 As an European Citizen I knew that. But there are a lot of tourists around Europe and better be save than sorry and put up warning signs.

[@alexanderbryant7666]

Just an FYI, that instrument is called an accordion, the bus/tram has an accordion section

[@TheBayru]

FYI, what in a lot of languages is called a harmonica is actually what's in english more specificly called a melodeon which is in very simple terms constructed as a harmonica with a bellows glued to it. An accordion for them is an accordion with a slightly different mechanism that doesn't change tone wether you push or pull. This distinction is not as strong for most english speakers. In those languages busses with such a section are thus called 'harmonicabusses' and the instrument you refer to as a harmonica is specificly called a 'mouthharmonica'.

[@alexanderbryant7666]

@@TheBayrucool, learn somethin new everyday

[@mikeyt2323]

My understanding of crosswalks isn't that the button is there to allow people to walk but that it's there to extend the walk sign longer as well. Have you tried timing how long the walk sign stays up from when the button is pushed vs not pushed?

[@JustinOToole]

3:38 Never underestimate the stupidity of tourists. There will literally be people standing at the entrance to the castle and asking a guide where the castle was. It happens in London as well.

[@MorgorDre]

Regarding Trams: You might target the one building the tram (like siemens) not the city ordering it… they usually forbid to lean agains these things as they are moving parts and by folding/opening you can press bodyparts. Only because an engineer made it highly unlikely something happens, doesn‘t mean its sage to do.

[@mrpetit2]

The word Reklama is very similar to the word for advertising used in dutch: reclame (and a lot of other countries/languages have a very similar or even the same word) It is from Latin origin and has spread to lots of germanic and slavic languages. It's strange that english doesn't use this word.

[@kutter_ttl6786]

It's also the word for advertisement/commercial in Indonesian. But considering our history with the Netherlands, that's not really a surprise.

[@LeReferee]

In French, "Réclame" is a slang word for advertisement ("publicité" or "pub" is the most used word)

[@blinkme0182]

Regarding that crosswalk button, I believe it works by making the light stay Red longer after it eventually changes, to give people more time to cross the road when the button is pressed, not making it change quicker for you when pressing the button. I could be wrong though

[@jackitlondon]

No it'll run for a fixed period. The button gives the option to run a signal plan which gives that pedestrian stage the opportunity to be called. If it's that busy then they'll fix it to be called everytime so they can coordinate traffic with it

[@PetrNo]

The function of the pedestrian button changes based on the time of day and traffic. During the day it may be there unnecessarily, but at night it keeps the red for cars and the green for pedestrians from jumping when there are none. But maybe it would be worth hiring a person who always mounts them in the evening and takes them off in the morning. Or during rush hour. Each intersection for different intervals and different settings! And finally, a word for this week: RANT.

[@Pidalin]

nobody is waiting for green at night 😀

[@OntarioBearHunter]

Most of those buttons at crosswalks don't work except at certain times of day , usually at night, where lights are traffic controlled and default green in one direction.

[@Pidalin]

When someone is asking about how Czech culture looks like and what it means when you say "švejkism," just show him this video, these things are the best example of a real Czech culture, like solve the problem by paper with "NOT WORKING!!!" is the most Czech thing ever. BTW, even Police is leaning on the door in metro. 😀

[@Beckford4000]

But we know that Czech police are a law unto themselves. I've seen Czech police peeing on a tree.

[@Pidalin]

@@Beckford4000 well, they are just people I guess, at least they won't beat you or shoot you like in some other countries 😀

[@Olam100]

This guy is great -- wish there were more "honest guides" in other world cities. Maybe start a franchise system?

[@catesimms8945]

I was last week in Prague... Your videos helped me a lot

[@tonycrayford3893]

In regards to pedestrian crossings, when I worked in traffic management many of those buttons that turn on a light telling you to wait are called placebo buttons as they do nothing but tell you to wait.

[@silvialittlewolf]

The button on the pedestrian light is there to make the green phase for crossing the street longer. The green phase does not start quicker, it just allows the pedestrians more time to cross the street. At least that is the case where I live. ;)

[@art_tale]

Believe me, the 8 no smoking signs are more necessary than you think, some smokers think that the sign is only applicable to a small area around the sign. Put one no smoking sign in one corner of the room, they just go smoke in the other corner. Put a sign in that corner, they just go to the other 2 corners.

[@brekkoh]

in my area of the US the pedestrian button does actually do something, if you are on a crosswalk during a non standard time of day its never going to change if there arent any cars or other pedestrians going through that area, so it only changes if you press the button, it may be programmed that way in prague too but if its the busiest intersection there is, maybe it never comes into play

[@czarkowskipawelyt]

7:14 Re: smoke signs, you need basically an infinite number of stop signs to prevent smokers from smoking. Most smokers are utterly incapable of understanding that their smoke is bothering someone, and will smoke unless there's like ten signs saying otherwise within their sight. City will soon have to add additional signs, forbidding electronic cigarettes specifically, cause you're going to see smokers saying "but it's an e-cig!". 9:00 I actually love these. It's a great way to ensure public documents are actually publically available and discoverable, and that everyone, regardless if they have access to the internet, can participate in the public debate.

[@John-ci8yk]

Don't know where Prague is, don't really care. That said your city looks very clean and very nice to live in. As for leaning against a subway door, if you ever come to America please don't do that. You see, at least where I live in America, we don't worry about terroristic attacks, the bridges fall down by themselves from lack of maintenance and inspections. Don't even get me started on the dam failures across the country each year. Please don't bet your life on the subway door remaining closed while the train is in motion. Your city does look really nice and a safe and healthy place to live. I apologize for not actually knowing where Prague is, John from Philly.

[@EarlJ55]

Maybe you should put an advertisement on those screens on the metro with a QR code directing to this video with the appropriate time stamp! 🤣😂

[@Bestrian]

I really love seeing these changes after beeing there a few years ago and actually seeing some of them. Amazing!

[@jab2393]

4:05 the stickers are there for legal reasons.....

[@lovecuba2]

Tourists,espesialy American tourist, expect to see some sort of Disney type Castle or Neu Schwanstein,, Versaille etc. Also never underestimate the dinsity of people. Anywhere you deal with a bureaucracy you will encounter the same problem. Idiotic regulations and the civil servants, after a while, just don't care anymore, out of frustration.

[@oscardoodles]

I’ve just got back from a brilliant week in Prague, saw you guys near Charles Bridge on Thursday. We’re definitely coming back, when my feet recover. 👍🏻

[@militariacollectablesbelgium]

Dude, i follow your channel for a while now. First, great great content. Your editing work, the knowledge of the city! But your scammer videos are so funny. I always wanted to visit praha❤ but now i am going to!

[@exodius9054]

The "useless" button for the green light at the crosswalk isnt useless at all. Here in germany there are many crosswalks where it actually doesnt matter if you push the button but if you give Humans a button to push and the feeling that it matters they are more likely to actually wait.

[@eidodk]

None of the "useless" info in this video is actually useless. The advertising company in the tramway pays to have the infoboards there, which in the end means lower price for travellers. The fact that the advertising company can't sell the spots doesn't cost the city anything at all. The infoboards at the city hall is BY LAW.. Thus not useless at all. The abundance of no smoking signs proves that people ignore them and smoke anyway. The sign to the castle is clearly there because someone asked abotu it... Not everything is useless because "YOU" think it is useless. (You as the youtuber here), The articulated buses/trams makes it a point of not using the bendy part to lean on for safety reasons. The bendy part rubber could be "tired" and you could end up in the street. Don't lean on doors in trains because the mechanism to open/close is a delicate piece of engineering that breaks if it gets weight put on it. Basically all of these things are very USEFUL, and just because the youtuber here doesn't understand them, doesn't make them useless at all..

[@azharAD]

3:04 I don't think it is pointless, if I were in Prague, without the sign I wouldn't know that the building in front of me is Prague castle! so I think the it is not meant to tell you where the castle is rather what that building is!

[@nerk1807]

where i currently live the button for green light works only when there is no traffic, if there is traffic, the button will prioritize the cars to not make a traffic jam, i recommend you try at night when there are no cars and people, maybe the result will diffrent

[@NoPantsBaby]

I have been telling the government officials every day I walk past this useless building called "Town Hall" where a lot of people seem to be doing nothing inside of and they should get rid of it. They haven't gotten around to it yet.

[@MrRvds]

I am not sure how common fog is in Prague. If there is some, one might not be able to see the castle from afar.

[@JodyOwen-we6oo]

You can see it, and it’s basically across the river from the main historic center and up the hill. The tricky part is actually getting there. Hopefully the signs guide pedestrians to the footpath up the hill, since a car or the Meyro are the only other ways to get there. I just wandered until I found the footpath personally.

[@frederico1579]

3:29 a razão é que não se avista o castelo em dias de nevoeiro

[@srdjagunjic]

The stickers on the harmonica is there for the legal reasons. If someone is to get hurt by standing there, the city is not liable because it clearly said it was not allowed. Same for the metro. Yes, something can happen to you which is falling out when the doors open...

[@miovicdina7706]

Bravo, Honest Guide!! 💪🌟 And "Well done!" to the Prague city officials for listening to good advice.👍

[@TheLEDscientist]

Currently in Prague and have been to a couple of these places, love to see this video :D

[@lucabaracuda987]

here in Australia, those buttons are not uselss for crosswalks, means when theres no much foot traffic (nighttime) its green for cars and only change when someone presses the button to crosss the road, (also good for visually impaired with sounds) so maybe the same there.

[@MagikosKol]

Janku, moc díky za Vaší práci s Honzou, až bdu mít to štěstí a potkám vám v práci, tak jsem ten, který Vám potřese pravicí a poděkuje Vám za Vaší práci. A rychlej vyblejsk, protože jinak mi to nikdo neuvěří a já bych chtěl abyste byli věřeni :-)

[@Greenberet.]

5:30 that's actually very surprising, with the foot traffic there you thought those ad screens would been filled, i wonder if they are charging insanely to ad there lol

[@glbernini0]

Love the hard work done on the outdoor toilet!

[@microcolonel]

The public records machines at city hall are probably not that expensive, and they at least in principle make public records available to anyone tall enough to press the buttons and literate enough to read the records; I think that's probably a good thing even if actual use of them is minimal.

[@BronoFWelz]

You have a beautiful city. I’m not really that big into sights but I can appreciate when it’s shown to me.

[@Asa...S]

They should run some Honest guide videos on those ad screens so some tourists might be warned about scams!

[@RobertPatrician]

You should totally buy an ad for your channel on those TVs... just for a day.

[@joaomartins4240]

The advertisement thing in the metro station is REALLY suspicious. Something is going on there. The folding bellows in the tram, leaning on metro doors and the respective signs is something that happens everywhere, I think.

[@thebicz2693]

If you lean on the train doors inside the train and fall asleep, you may seriously hurt yourself, after it stops and open these doors. In Poland nobody does that (lean on the train door inside) and look how close are we, culturally :D

[@KAFKUBA]

Believe it or not, this is part of the charm of Prague...if it was America there would be a lawyer in every crosswalk. I've been studying czech 25 years and I suck... you sound so good speaking it