November 11th, 2007
Melody Road - a Road That Plays a Tune (Sorta)
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
Only in Japan, right? Have you ever driven over a road that has grooves in it, such that you get a (usually nasty) resonance and vibration? That’s often done to make sure you don’t drive off the edge of an offramp or some other similar “hazard.” Well, a Japanese scientist got the “bright idea” of cutting the grooves in such a way as to produce a kind of music.
There are three places in Japan with Melody Roads, including Hokkaido, Wakayama and Gunma. And yes, the road has a musical note painted on it, so you can be sure to know why exactly that crazy sound is coming from your tires.
We Say: I listened to it, BTW, and to me it’s not so much a song as a noise. There were occasional times when I could almost, almost make out a melody, though. 
Watch a video clip (all in Japanese, though):
John Corliss says:
I”m sure that such a thing is very bad for one’s tires. Last summer a friend rode his motorcycle over a 40 mile stretch of road that had been grooved for repaving. At the end of that stretch, his back tire had the cord showing through about 80 percent of the tread. His tire was already kind of worn out, but this finished it off. This “musical road” would promote unnecessary tire wear. But Japan is a rich country and they can afford to waste resources.
November 12th, 2007 at 3:00 am
Aaron Davis says:
It only sounds like noise because you don’t recognize the song
This is a lot like the flatbed scanner, F1 engine, and giant tesla coil
November 17th, 2007 at 12:07 am