Council removes traffic light controls - guess what happens?
Discussion
http://www.wimp.com/trafficlights/
This is absolutely true of just about every junction I've ever crossed, where the lights have failed. Its a bloody doddle.
This is absolutely true of just about every junction I've ever crossed, where the lights have failed. Its a bloody doddle.
In Carlisle after the floods in 2005, the traffic lights failed at hardwicke circus roundabout. The traffic ran so smoothly and reduced congestion to such an extent that they changed the system to part time signals. It has completely transformed the city for driving at off peak hours.
Edited by roscozs on Sunday 10th October 20:57
Happens round my city too - traffic lights go out and traffic runs just as smooth, if not better. Less traffic held up, less pollution, less stop/start traffic. I've said it to myself before that if the government were happy to fund proper traffic wardens across the country then at rush hour they could turn off the traffic lights and let a human being control the flow.
Trouble is, does it mean that traffic just gets to the next pinch-point quicker so in the big scheme of things does it really help. Hmmmmm.....
Trouble is, does it mean that traffic just gets to the next pinch-point quicker so in the big scheme of things does it really help. Hmmmmm.....
Every now and then one of the sets of traffic lights on my route to work stops working (they're only on part of the time and the clock seems to sometimes go mad) and it at least doubles my journey time. There are one or two around here that I think the traffic might flow better without, but the majority are necessary.
kambites said:
Every now and then one of the sets of traffic lights on my route to work stops working (they're only on part of the time and the clock seems to sometimes go mad) and it at least doubles my journey time. There are one or two around here that I think the traffic might flow better without, but the majority are necessary.
Quite often when they fail one "route" clears much quicker. And quite often that route is the main flow of traffic. But at the expense of one or more of the other minor routes.... which jam up.Munter said:
kambites said:
Every now and then one of the sets of traffic lights on my route to work stops working (they're only on part of the time and the clock seems to sometimes go mad) and it at least doubles my journey time. There are one or two around here that I think the traffic might flow better without, but the majority are necessary.
Quite often when they fail one "route" clears much quicker. And quite often that route is the main flow of traffic. But at the expense of one or more of the other minor routes.... which jam up.Problem is that for some reason here virtually all traffic light controls are done by timer, other countries use some kind of vehicle monitoring so changes the lights when there is actually a need not just after a set time. They used this on the A34 junction at Didcot and it transformed it from queues all the time to virtually nothing now. On the opposite thought a junction near where i work has sensors in the road and trucks travelling in the opposite direction trigger the ones for a right turn as they pass so you sit there for 30 seconds for nothing as they go through their sequence.
phil1967 said:
I am a fan of shared space initiatives (I work in a Highways department for a Council), but traffic lights are necessary in some places for pedestrians too. However, there are many that can be removed and it would make improvements no end.
Just checking you're not in Peterborough or your 'nads would be toast. We have always had roundabouts, footbridges and underpasses and no lights and it worked a treat. Some t
t has bought a job lot of lights and needs ritually killing and putting on display at the City limits 
We have a monstrosity called the Gogarburn roundabout in Edinburgh. When it was built, it was a simple, if big roundabout. It worked like any other roundabout. The council then decided to 'tweak' it using traffic lights with different phasing at different times of day. The upshot is that at full rush hour time you are controlled by traffic lights that encourage trying to be last man across on the major routes into it, causing huge tailbacks and gridlock on the actual roundabout. When I use it at 23.00 hrs to go all the way round it, it stops me at every entry on, so I have to stop three time and idle for no other traffic. Green Council credentials eh?
Tunku said:
We have a monstrosity called the Gogarburn roundabout in Edinburgh. When it was built, it was a simple, if big roundabout. It worked like any other roundabout. The council then decided to 'tweak' it using traffic lights with different phasing at different times of day. The upshot is that at full rush hour time you are controlled by traffic lights that encourage trying to be last man across on the major routes into it, causing huge tailbacks and gridlock on the actual roundabout. When I use it at 23.00 hrs to go all the way round it, it stops me at every entry on, so I have to stop three time and idle for no other traffic. Green Council credentials eh?
Reminds me of J7 of the A1M.Part time lights, recently became full time. Absolutely pointless to the extreme. Means I can no longer nail it round at 60 either *sigh*
On the other hand, Norfolk council built a new roundabout on the A47 ( here) that now means people who take a little rat run through some lanes now have right of way onto this junction over the people on the A47 (in the mornings when traffic is heading towards Norwich). The result? Massive traffic jams every morning, more people using the rat runs and talk of putting traffic lights on the roundabout 
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