The ‘Paul Mijksenaar Design for Function Award 2011’ is a posthumous tribute to Edward Hines, whose genius led to white centerlines on streets and motorways.
White lines down the middle of the road: What could be more obvious? And yet they were once – in 1911, to be exact – a brilliant new idea. In Michigan, Edward N. Hines, a member of the Wayne County Road Commission, saw a leaky milk wagon leaving a liquid trail on a dusty roadway. It made him think of painting white lines down the centre of the road to create lanes that would clearly separate traffic moving in opposite directions.

Read the complete press release (PDF)
Persbericht in Nederlands (PDF)