traffic light waves

[yachtman]

at last we might get this here, a traffic improvement !!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7998182.stm

however what a policy to have kept till now toquote from the article

"Previously the Department for Transport (DfT) had discouraged the systems which reduce fuel use, resulting in less tax being paid to the Treasury."

 

[robert.saunders]

Lots of waving going on

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=67795

 

[KillerHERTZ]

2 weeks ago in Cambridge (we are shortlisted for Concharging) all the traffic lights in the centre of town went down at rush hour in the morning. The jams actually improved over a normal mornings traffic according to the local rag!

 

[yachtman]

Lots of waving going on

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=67795

oops!
missed that one

 

[johnsco]

Some 25 years ago, I used to travel to work each morning through the centre of Leeds, where phased traffic lights (as we knew them) were the norm.
Sensible driving meant that you knew that you would pass through all the city centre lights on green.
Sensible stuff.

One morning, when the system broke down, I shame to say that I drove through a light on red because I assumed it would be green !!

It has been obvious to me for some time that red lights have been introduced in many areas simply to foul the system up to the maximum extent.
When I have made this observation, Mrs J has simply told me that this is "typical of my cynical attitude".
The trouble is - I half-believed her.

EVEN I AM SHOCKED TO READ THAT THIS HAS BEEN GOVERNMENT POLICY TO MAXIMISE FUEL REVENUES !!!!!!!

WHAT AN ABSURD AGE WE LIVE IN !

(This thread isn't a wind-up, is it ???)

Anyway - Rant finished.
Thank God that a glimmer of common sense prevails in the depths of this madness.

Johnsco

 

[Dieselman]

Rather than to raise fuel duty revenues, wasn't traffic light phasing designed to reduce the amount of traffic entering City centres, by holding some of it back.?
Don't forget that for every road 'in phase' another is out of phase so will suffer longer delays.

Traffic lights are the responsibility of County Council, not Government, aren't they.?

 

[glojo]

One morning, when the system broke down, I shame to say that I drove through a light on red because I assumed it would be green !!

Cripes!!

 

[Dryce]

Don't forget that for every road 'in phase' another is out of phase so will suffer longer delays.

Only a minority of roads 'conflict' in this way. Those joining a properly phased major route from a lower prioritised adjoining route still win.

My biggest grief with urban traffic is the lack of phasing and wasted fuel.

In Glasgow they introduced a byelaw against sitting at the side of the road with your engine idling - and yet have some appallingly phased lights in the suburbs on major routes which cause vehicles unecessarily to stand idling in the middle of the road.

 

[Number_Cruncher]

>>Don't forget that for every road 'in phase' another is out of phase so will suffer longer delays.

I don't think that's necessarily true.

If the traffic can be kept in groups - the 30 limit does this quite well - then it should be possible to phase them so that the traffic lights at red will have no traffic in front of them.

In the longer term, if the traffic light systems and in-car sat-navs could talk to each other, and interact with a speed limiter, stopping at lights could be almost eradicated.

The capacity of a road where the traffic never actually stops must be much higher than one which has strangled by injudicious, or even plain meddlesome traffic light phasings.

 

[Dieselman]

How do side roads cross or join the main road if the lights are phased to keep the main road always flowing.?

The traffic on the side road will sit for longer then join the main road and hit a red light.

 

[recycled]

"Previously the Department for Transport (DfT) had discouraged the systems which reduce fuel use, resulting in less tax being paid to the Treasury."


Wow you mean the DFT wants us to use more fuel, thereby paying more tax?
I thought they cared about the environment

 

[Dryce]

The traffic on the side road will sit for longer then join the main road and hit a red light.

Why should it sit longer?

And if you join the unphased major route then the traffic from the side road loses out like every one else. It gains if the route is phased.

The only potential 'losers' are major phased routes that cross where the phasing of the two routes cannot be coordinated.

 

[Dryce]

"Previously the Department for Transport (DfT) had discouraged the systems which reduce fuel use, resulting in less tax being paid to the Treasury."

This statement doesn't really ring true.

 

[Number_Cruncher]

How do side roads cross or join the main road if the lights are phased to keep the main road always flowing.?

The traffic on the side road will sit for longer then join the main road and hit a red light.

You're assuming a continuous flow of traffic rather than traffic neatly parcelled up into groups by the first traffic lights in the system.

 

[jeremytaylor]

"Previously the Department for Transport (DfT) had discouraged the systems which reduce fuel use, resulting in less tax being paid to the Treasury."

Isn't this outrageous!?!?

 

[recycled]

This statement doesn't really ring true.

not me. just quoted from the website.
What exactly is the truth then?

 

[johnsco]

If you enter a phased system, either at the start of it, or by joining it from a side-road, then your first light may well be red.
You then pass through it when it changes to green.
After this, all subsequent lights should be green.
Obviously, careful traffic management planning should be able to optimise it to facilititate optimum traffic flows on major routes, and these will vary at different times of the day.
Sensible planning to me.

 

[glojo]

If you enter a phased system, either at the start of it, or by joining it from a side-road, then your first light may well be red.
You then pass through it when it changes to green.
After this, all subsequent lights should be green.
Obviously, careful traffic management planning should be able to optimise it to facilititate optimum traffic flows on major routes, and these will vary at different times of the day.
Sensible planning to me.

here in Torbay the fire Brigade over ride these systems and lights will alter to ensure the approaching emergency vehicle will have a clear passage. Great theory but it causes chaos as lights remain red for extended periods which then encourage drivers to believe the lights are defective

 

[Dryce]

Great theory but it causes chaos as lights remain red for extended periods which then encourage drivers to believe the lights are defective

Well the theory is good. The implementation sounds like it is very poor. So much seems to be ill-thought out these days.