Believe it or not，optical illusion can cut highway crashes.
Japan is a case in point．It has reduced automobile crashes on some roads by Rearly 75 percent using a simple optical illusion．Butst．ripes,called chevrons(人字形)，painted on ther rads make drivers think that they are driving faster than they really are，and thus drivers slow down.
Now the American Automobile Association Foundation for Traffic Safety in Washington D．C. is planning t。repeat Japan’s success．Starting next year，the foundati。n will paint cheyrons and。ther pattems of stripes on selected roads around the country to test how well the patterns reduce highway erashes．
Excessive(too great)speed plays a major role in as much as one fifth of all fatal traffic accidents， according to the foundation．To help reduce those accidents，the foundation will conduct its tests in areas where speed-related hazards(danger)are the greatest curves，exit slopes，traffic circles，and bridges．
Some studies suggest that straight，horizontal bars painted across roads can initially cut the average speed of drivers in half．However,traffic。ften returns to full speed within months as driVers become used to seeing the painted bars．
Chevrons，scientists say，not only give drivers the impression that they are driving faster than they reallv are but als0 make a lane appear to be narrower．The result is a longer lasting reduction in highway speed and the number of traffic accidents．
The American Automobile Association Foundation for Traffic Safety plans to（）
A. try out the Japanese method in certain areas
B. change the road signs across the country
C. replace straight, horizontal bars with chevrons
D. repeat the Japanese road patterns
