Discussion
Amber means stop - unless you can't without going over the line.
TSRGD said:
the amber signal shall, when shown alone, convey the same prohibition as the red signal, except that, as respects any vehicle which is so close to the stop line that it cannot safely be stopped without proceeding beyond the stop line, it shall convey the same indication as the green signal or green arrow signal which was shown immediately before it
I know of a lady fighting an insurance claim in which her car was rear ended as she slowed for lights.
This was the second in a series of lights on a green flow type setting.
She was struck in the rear by a biker .. who denied any liability .. claiming she cut him up at the first lights.
As if.
In the court .. he told the court that he passed the first lights on amber because he was going "too fast to stop" und the judge apparently "preferred his version"
He did not apparently know at which speed he travel.. He also set off from previous lights to these some 30 seconds later und caught up with that traffic at these later light sequences.
Pity cops were not called .. but this was apparently a minor collision to rear of car und should have been self-explanatory in her favour.. only neither party accepted any liability - so it end up bizarrely in court with an apparently bizarre outcome.
This was the second in a series of lights on a green flow type setting.
She was struck in the rear by a biker .. who denied any liability .. claiming she cut him up at the first lights.
As if. In the court .. he told the court that he passed the first lights on amber because he was going "too fast to stop" und the judge apparently "preferred his version"
He did not apparently know at which speed he travel.. He also set off from previous lights to these some 30 seconds later und caught up with that traffic at these later light sequences.
Pity cops were not called .. but this was apparently a minor collision to rear of car und should have been self-explanatory in her favour.. only neither party accepted any liability - so it end up bizarrely in court with an apparently bizarre outcome.
7db said:
Amber means stop - unless you can't without going over the line.
There was a study recently that suggested that the quickest speed you can stop from (safely /non-emergency) upon seeing an amber light is about 45mph. This was based on a certain decellerating force, and an amber time of 2 secs (I think). Makes it very difficult given the number of NSL dual carriageways that have traffic lights on, as the "cautious" driver would need to slow from 70mph to 45mph to allow themself time to stop, even when approaching a green light. Obviously there comes a point, when approaching green lights, where to slow further would be silly and one can only plow on and hope for the best.
Anticipation is the name of the game.
So, the law is an ass, but yes, if it is safe to do so, you *should* stop on amber, *must* stop on red
I once intentionally went through a red in Leeds,
Inner ring road, dual carriageway, downhill, no hard shoulder, just concrete walls on either side.
Lights went to amber slowed and stopped. Looked in the rear view and woman behind hadn't seen any of this and was approaching at a fair lick, then came the screeching as she locked the front wheels. The only place she could go was into the back of me, very hard, so just drove through the lights and into the right lane giving her an escape. She screeched past and came to a halt about 40 feet infront.
Inner ring road, dual carriageway, downhill, no hard shoulder, just concrete walls on either side.
Lights went to amber slowed and stopped. Looked in the rear view and woman behind hadn't seen any of this and was approaching at a fair lick, then came the screeching as she locked the front wheels. The only place she could go was into the back of me, very hard, so just drove through the lights and into the right lane giving her an escape. She screeched past and came to a halt about 40 feet infront.
[quote=Brian35"]I once intentionally went through a red in Leeds,
Inner ring road, dual carriageway, downhill, no hard shoulder, just concrete walls on either side.
Lights went to amber slowed and stopped. Looked in the rear view and woman behind hadn't seen any of this and was approaching at a fair lick, then came the screeching as she locked the front wheels. The only place she could go was into the back of me, very hard, so just drove through the lights and into the right lane giving her an escape. She screeched past and came to a halt about 40 feet infront.[/quote]
Ruddy good anticipation that! And then the reactions to do something about it in a safe and comfortable manner!
I've had a few bottom clenching moments sat at a set of lights where I've seen someone come screeching up behind me!!! THANKFULLY (touch wood) not had any problems so far!!!
Inner ring road, dual carriageway, downhill, no hard shoulder, just concrete walls on either side.
Lights went to amber slowed and stopped. Looked in the rear view and woman behind hadn't seen any of this and was approaching at a fair lick, then came the screeching as she locked the front wheels. The only place she could go was into the back of me, very hard, so just drove through the lights and into the right lane giving her an escape. She screeched past and came to a halt about 40 feet infront.[/quote]
Ruddy good anticipation that! And then the reactions to do something about it in a safe and comfortable manner!
I've had a few bottom clenching moments sat at a set of lights where I've seen someone come screeching up behind me!!! THANKFULLY (touch wood) not had any problems so far!!!
I'm almost always the first person to stop for a set of lights. The rule most people seem to work on is,
Green = Go.
Amber = Go.
Red = Go if it's only just turned red.
Then again they end up dawdling around on the green too, which is frustrating. And it's rare to see anyone actually get ready on amber so that the moment the green light illuminates, they release the handbrake, drop the clutch and go.
In fact I'm fairly sure no-one is really looking at the traffic light, they're just watching the car in front.
It's such a simple thing, how do they get it so wrong, so consistently?
Green = Go.
Amber = Go.
Red = Go if it's only just turned red.
Then again they end up dawdling around on the green too, which is frustrating. And it's rare to see anyone actually get ready on amber so that the moment the green light illuminates, they release the handbrake, drop the clutch and go.
In fact I'm fairly sure no-one is really looking at the traffic light, they're just watching the car in front.
It's such a simple thing, how do they get it so wrong, so consistently?
Timberwolf said:
In fact I'm fairly sure no-one is really looking at the traffic light, they're just watching the car in front.
It's such a simple thing, how do they get it so wrong, so consistently?
It's such a simple thing, how do they get it so wrong, so consistently?
Particularly as every car in the queue does the same, it's a chain-reaction of the dim-witted with each driver in turn thinking "Ooh, the car in front is moving... Now, what do these pedals do?"
Mr Freefall said:
Whats happend to flashing Amber now at ped crossings. They used to flash before green, but in my area, the now follow Red, Red & Amber, Green.
The flashing bit seems to have changed, or have I just note kept up with the time?
The flashing bit seems to have changed, or have I just note kept up with the time?
Possibly Puffin/Toucan Crossings rather than Pelican Crossings?
stuthemong said:
1/2 the problem is the idiot councils setting the cycle times.
Absolutely. On one of the junctions I use regularly, there are three exits - straight ahead and left have pedestrian crossings on them.
If either of the pedestrian crossings are used, it sets all the lights to red... including the right turn filter.
I much prefer roundabouts as, barring rubbish drivers and nightmare landscaping, you don't end up having to wait nearly a minute for "nothing". They also don't have the problem that single lane traffic lights at crossroads do; first car in the queue wants to turn right, gets blocked by oncoming traffic until the green cycle ends, second car and all behind it have to wait for another complete change.
Probably not as easy to integrate with pedestrian crossings though.
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