In one of the oddest ways possible, the famous 'Abbey Road' album by The Beatles has been saving lives. The iconic album which features the legendary band crossing a pedestrian lane at the London thoroughfare has been used by Indian officials as part of a string of public service announcements against jaywalking.
India has the highest rate of road accidents in the world each year. According to The Telegraph UK, over 140,000 people die in road-related incidents annually--a far comparison to the 2,000 road deaths in UK and 32,000 deaths in the United States.
To help cut the growing number of accidents, Indian road authorities decided to use the iconic 'Abbey Road' image to warn people of the dangers of ignoring road precautions.
"The Beatles touched thousands of lives with their music and we are simply trying to use their universal appeal to save lives," explained Joint Commissioner of the Calcutta Traffic Police Supratim Sarkar, as reported by The Telegraph.
Included in the image of the rock legends crossing the famous Abbey Road are the words "If they can, why can't you?"
"We are trying to say that if John [Lennon], Paul [McCartney], George [Harrison] and Ringo [Starr] could use the zebra crossing, you can do it too," Sarkar further explained.
Hundreds of this signage were placed all over Calcutta in the past months and so far, the results have been very positive. According to Calcutta officials, since the posters have been placed, accident rates have fallen by 20% from posted 3,000 road traffic accidents.
"I am very proud if Abbey Road is a beacon for road safety around the world," Abbey Road Councillor Lindsey Hall of the Westminster City Council told The Telegraph.
Almost 45 years after the release of the album and still it continues to touch lives an affect people--a proof that The Beatles mania lives on.
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