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Old 08-27-2023, 11:15 PM   #57
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Face it, sometimes you're just not gonna make it without ending up stopped in the intersection. If I start to pucker, I slip my finger on the air horn button just in case.
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Old 08-28-2023, 03:10 AM   #58
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When approaching a “stale” green there are a couple things i look for:

1- are the vehicles well spaced in the on coming lane.. if so, the light is nearing the end of it’s cycle. If they are still grouped together it’s the beginning of the cycle.

2- if there are pedestrian crossing lights, glance at the counter. Even if you can’t read the number you can tell of it is single or double digits.

I use these as clues to the signals timing.

I also “cover” the brake when approaching signals or in traffic. It has saved me more than once.

I drove fire engines for many years, we were taught the brake covering in our training. Countless times people have pulled in front of the engine and hard braked …
In our business we were always quoting “You can’t fix stupid but you can plan for it”
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Old 08-28-2023, 03:57 AM   #59
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It's a tough call, but I usually roll on through if at highway speed. Most traffic lights have a 2-second delay from the time your light turns red until the opposing traffic light turns green, so that gives a little margin for getting though the intersection.
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Old 08-28-2023, 05:18 AM   #60
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Originally Posted by dhj1974 View Post
There is an organization that sets standards for traffic lights. The standard is designed to allow you to make a reasonable stop if you are driving at the speed limit without entering the intersection. <snip>
I believe you are talking about the FHA (Federal Highway Administration) part of the DOT, which documents the standards in the MUTCD (Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices).

It used to be the case that there was a guideline, or perhaps standard, of 1 second per 10 MPH for the length of a yellow light. So, 30 MPH zones had 3-second yellows, and so on. However, that was dropped in favor of an engineering assessment. The MUTCD now says,

"Standard:

"01 A steady yellow signal indication shall be displayed following every CIRCULAR GREEN or GREEN ARROW signal indication and following every flashing YELLOW ARROW or flashing RED ARROW signal indication displayed as a part of a steady mode operation. This requirement shall not apply when
a CIRCULAR GREEN, a flashing YELLOW ARROW, or a flashing RED ARROW signal indication is followed immediately by a GREEN ARROW signal indication.

"02 The exclusive function of the yellow change interval shall be to warn traffic of an impending change in the right-of-way assignment.

"03 The duration of the yellow change interval shall be determined using engineering practices." <===

So, you can't rely on any "standard" any more for the length of a yellow. We can only hope the engineering assessments yield safe intervals for prompt action when the light turns yellow.
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Old 08-28-2023, 07:34 AM   #61
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I tend to glance at the walk signals as they count down, when they get to "0" the light changes to yellow, it will give you a good idea as to when to prepare to stop.
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Old 08-28-2023, 07:37 AM   #62
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I recently got a ticket from a red light camera. Before I paid it off, I made sure to do some research on statutes regarding red lights in the state of Washington. As long as you were in the cross way prior to the light, turning red, you are legally allowed to continue without having broken any laws. This applies only to the state of Washington. I’m sure other states might have different statutes.
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Old 08-28-2023, 08:39 AM   #63
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If there is a walk light on the corner, look to see if it is white or flashing. If it’s flashing the light will be changing soon
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Old 08-28-2023, 08:52 AM   #64
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I have had a similar discussion with a judge. The municipality where the lights are get to set the amount of time that the lights remain yellow. At the very least it should be long enough that a vehicle travelling at the speed limit will have enough time to safely stop before the light turns red. Having said that, there isn't a visual marker that lets you know where the point of no return is, unfortunately. Its a crap shoot! I go with my gut, and visual clues, how heavy is the traffic, visibility, etc
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Old 08-28-2023, 01:28 PM   #65
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I'd love to know what is the time between yellow to red for various speed limits. Please post if anybody has that. I remember going to Washington state and even driving a rental car I was surprised at how short the time was from yellow to red. They have a lot of cameras at intersections and I was told that if you stop past the marked stop line, you may still get a ticket even if you don't go until after the light is green. NC doesn't enforce such a rule so I have a bad habit of stopping after the line. Luckily I didn't get tickets in the mail. Later I read that Washington had shortened the time for caution lights intentionally to raise more revenue from people running red lights. They got caught and I think they were being forced to increase the time. What an underhanded and dangerous way to increase state revenue. I think it was around 2006 but not positive. Hope the people who did that were voted out of office or got fired. So maybe there is no uniform time for a caution light in a 55mph zone across states. I wish I could understand better how to prevent someone from cutting in front and then slamming on their brakes. What also scares me is when the approach to the light is down-hill and people who stop along the side of the interstate and then decide to pull out in front of me in a small car that has slow acceleration. The other is people who stop one or two car lengths behind the next car causing everybody behind them to stop much faster.
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Old 08-28-2023, 02:26 PM   #66
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I'd love to know what is the time between yellow to red for various speed limits. Please post if anybody has that. <snip>
Please see post #60.
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Old 08-29-2023, 11:22 AM   #67
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Yeah, all good answers, but who goes 50-55 mph on surface streets towing a trailer. Generally speaking the lights are set to allow you to safely get thru the intersection with out incident.
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Old 08-30-2023, 11:28 AM   #68
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What do you mean "surface streets"? Most non interstate roads in America I travel go at least 55 with lights at rural intersections.
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Old 08-30-2023, 11:37 AM   #69
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What do you mean "surface streets"? Most non interstate roads in America I travel go at least 55 with lights at rural intersections.
Surface streets arose out of California where there are Surface Streets at ground level that are often overshadowed by Elevated Limited Access Highways.
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Old 08-30-2023, 01:55 PM   #70
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Yeah, all good answers, but who goes 50-55 mph on surface streets towing a trailer. Generally speaking the lights are set to allow you to safely get thru the intersection with out incident.
You would be surprised. I see LOTS of people with trailers speeding. It may take me longer to get there but I get there safe.
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