Speed Activated Traffic Lights. 30mph zone.
Discussion
Saw some of these in a village in Scotland last week.
I'm not talking about speed cameras or advisory signs with smiling/frowning faces.
They are basically sets of bog standard red traffic lights 100M or so inside the 30 mph limit at both ends of the village..
They are not at junctions or crossings etc. Just at the roadside forcing you to comply.
They probably have cameras monitoring failure to comply with the signals if they go red.
If you enter the limit and do not slow to exactly 30mph or less they immediately go red and force you to stop.
If you are departing the village and start accelerating above 30mph as you approach the derestriction then ditto, they go red and force you to stop/slow down.
It's like an instant punishment, you were speeding so you can now stop and wait.
I thought they were very effective/annoying in equal measure.
I'm not talking about speed cameras or advisory signs with smiling/frowning faces.
They are basically sets of bog standard red traffic lights 100M or so inside the 30 mph limit at both ends of the village..
They are not at junctions or crossings etc. Just at the roadside forcing you to comply.
They probably have cameras monitoring failure to comply with the signals if they go red.
If you enter the limit and do not slow to exactly 30mph or less they immediately go red and force you to stop.
If you are departing the village and start accelerating above 30mph as you approach the derestriction then ditto, they go red and force you to stop/slow down.
It's like an instant punishment, you were speeding so you can now stop and wait.
I thought they were very effective/annoying in equal measure.
Preferable to speed humps /cushions.
Only works to the extent people obey red lights though (hence the need for a camera).
I have only ever jumped red lights when a set of temporary lights is clearly broken, has been sitting on red for ages, and can see nothing is coming.
But if a red light served no safety purpose (ie no pedestrians crossing or no junction with other cars coming) then I could well imagine cars just sailing through them.
Only works to the extent people obey red lights though (hence the need for a camera).
I have only ever jumped red lights when a set of temporary lights is clearly broken, has been sitting on red for ages, and can see nothing is coming.
But if a red light served no safety purpose (ie no pedestrians crossing or no junction with other cars coming) then I could well imagine cars just sailing through them.
Yup. There is one as you enter Springholm on the A75 in Scotland. I triggered it, I wondered what was happening. Luckily no one was around for me to suffer any embarrassment! We were staying in the area, so I travelled through it several more times, all below the trigger point! I could see the point, a bendy road, houses both side.
Pica-Pica said:
mac96 said:
Seems unfair on the car behind obeying the speed limit! And won't slow locals who are stopping in the village anyway?
They are usually as you enter a village before any side roads, and have a camera for the red light.mac96 said:
Pica-Pica said:
mac96 said:
Seems unfair on the car behind obeying the speed limit! And won't slow locals who are stopping in the village anyway?
They are usually as you enter a village before any side roads, and have a camera for the red light.
Pica-Pica said:
NGee said:
Does anyone know how fast you have to go to get past the lights before they have time to change to red?
No. I would imagine they could cope with a high speed. Not a serious suggestion, I assume.
.I'm all for these. Baically inconveniencing you if you speed in the village. I've seen them in Portugal and after realising what activated them, I just made sure I was down to the limit at the start of the village. Caused me zero inconvenience and unlike speed hunps etc, didn't wear the car. I enjoy a spirited drive, but villages are never the place for these and they sure as hell beat a speed camera van. There will be some morons who don't understand how they work - you know, the type who hit the brakes each time they pass an average speed camera - but nothing is perfect.
PaulD86 said:
I'm all for these. Baically inconveniencing you if you speed in the village. I've seen them in Portugal and after realising what activated them, I just made sure I was down to the limit at the start of the village. Caused me zero inconvenience and unlike speed hunps etc, didn't wear the car. I enjoy a spirited drive, but villages are never the place for these and they sure as hell beat a speed camera van. There will be some morons who don't understand how they work - you know, the type who hit the brakes each time they pass an average speed camera - but nothing is perfect.
I agree, anything but speed bumps. All they do is cause more people to buy large SUVs.CoolHands said:
Brake heavily for the activation camera, speed back up. Not much point if you ask me.
Hopefully most will be jolted into realising that they're going above the speed limit in a residential area/village and stay below 30 although a minority may speed up to over the limit again. However, even those would've spent some of their time below the limit rather than none which is still an improvement. Once you've realised you were over the limit in a residential area, why would you intentionally speed up to over the limit again if you're decent human being?More emissions, slowing, idling, accelerating again, all incredibly wasteful.
Would like to see the air quality before and after the introduction of these devices.
The idea is OK I think but in reality an average speed camera zone would have been better and affect the environment less.
Would like to see the air quality before and after the introduction of these devices.
The idea is OK I think but in reality an average speed camera zone would have been better and affect the environment less.
CarCrazyDad said:
More emissions, slowing, idling, accelerating again, all incredibly wasteful.
Would like to see the air quality before and after the introduction of these devices.
The idea is OK I think but in reality an average speed camera zone would have been better and affect the environment less.
It’s a village that is deemed a 30. There are 300/200/100 countdown markers, so what is the issue?Would like to see the air quality before and after the introduction of these devices.
The idea is OK I think but in reality an average speed camera zone would have been better and affect the environment less.
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