Red Lights

[purplepolly]

Great point,i have one of these at a crossroads near my place of work and doing a 2-10 shift on the way home there is very little if any traffic behind me,hence in the past i have waited 5-10 mins or so for a car to come along before the lights change,now i tend to wait a couple of mins before edging out looking left and right and ahead before taking the right turn.The road that crosses in front of me is dead straight for ages so no chance of vehicles coming at speed around a bend etc and me not seeing it.I wonder if there are any devices that can be attached to a bike to change the lights?????
ps,i did phone the council about this and they said in this situation treat the lights as if they are out of action because to all intent and purpose they are for you.
Simon

I'm not sure that's the right solution - sensors must be able to detect all traffic, including bicycles, in order to meet the legal standards. If the sensors don't detect your bike then the lights are not lawful and the council should adjust the sensors so that they'll detect your bike. There are many traffic lights that can detect bikes so there's no excuse for councils to be installing sub-standard lights.

 

[GrasB]

Around cambridge you have to take up primary & they work fine, many cyclists complain they didn't trigger but I never have a problem as I take up primary coming to lights, I often trigger them for riders in the cycle lane though. From my understanding they were pressure sensitive not magnetic sensors though.

 

[purplepolly]

It's not necessary: period. If for some reason you can't wait, dismount and walk. That way you stay legal & don't wind-up other road users.

Please try and read first,there are no other road users to wind up thats why the lights dont change.Please try to comprehend[/quote]

In this case Simon, the highway code is actually on your side

rule 176
You MUST NOT move forward over the white line when the red light is showing. Only go forward when the traffic lights are green if there is room for you to clear the junction safely or you are taking up a position to turn right. If the traffic lights are not working, treat the situation as you would an unmarked junction and proceed with great care

As the lights don't detect you bike, as they legally must, they are not working.

 

[classic33]

I'm not sure that's the right solution - sensors must be able to detect all traffic, including bicycles, in order to meet the legal standards. If the sensors don't detect your bike then the lights are not lawful and the council should adjust the sensors so that they'll detect your bike. There are many traffic lights that can detect bikes so there's no excuse for councils to be installing sub-standard lights.

IF the lights are not legal, due to faulty sensors, does that mean you are not jumping a red light. That being the case most of the lights round near me, not on a timing sequence must be illegal. Those in the town centre require something larger than a bike. Only one set having a MAD sensor under the road surface.

Ran a red light on the road into shipley & got pulled up by a police officer, made to cycle to the end of the railings up onto the pavement dismount and give a reason for ignoring the lights. My reason passed as he was talking. Ambulance on "blues & two's". I'd simply moved out of the way on hearing the siren.

Held up a lorry on the A58 around halve five on a Sunday morning, his being the only moving vehicle seen that morning, because the lights wouldn't change quick enough for the driver. He pulled over to the right hand side of the road before turning right. He then stopped and waited for me after he'd cleared the junction & the houses. Simply gave him a wide berth & took the name of the company of the lorry. Phoned them on the Tuesday.

 

[jonny jeez]

Guys,

Can I just ask that we be tolerant of the OP. He has at least had the decency of posting on here and asking what we think.

Well said

When I first started riding, the temptation to jump pedestrian crossings that were vacant was immense.

But, I didn’t and today I notice that those that don’t stop at lights are generally less fitter than me (as I was then) and I catch and scalp them easily within minutes...even seconds.

I have to say that I enjoy being one of those that dont RLJ and I like being able to "align" myself with other road sharers on the issue (even shaking my head and rolling my eyes when I see it occur)

I feel it does me a lot of favours on my route either that day...or the next, as I see the same road sharers almost each day at the same point.

One last point, I enjoy the break offered by stopping at the lights, not just a breather, but a break form the monotonous movement and position of riding (especially for a long ish distance each day) and it breaks the ride up from a hardcore thrash into something that allows me to stop and smell the roses.

Oh, and well done for standing up to a potential torrent of abuse and asking the question, I hope the replies have given you food for thought.

 

[hackbike 666]

If the police just concentrated on real crime maybe this country wouldn't have lost so much faith in them.

You know pretty much when you see them pulling cyclists they must feel so embarrassed justifying themselves.

There is something that impresses me with Bangkok is the level of respect and dodgy driving but no,rare or very rare road rage and the fact the traffic cops have guns.There is still something here (like respect) which is lacking from the knuckle draggers in England.Obviously the cops in England are undermanned and are tied by red tape.

Im back there soon sadly,I didn't miss being in my homeland.

 

[simongrant]

In this case Simon, the highway code is actually on your side

rule 176
You MUST NOT move forward over the white line when the red light is showing. Only go forward when the traffic lights are green if there is room for you to clear the junction safely or you are taking up a position to turn right. If the traffic lights are not working, treat the situation as you would an unmarked junction and proceed with great care

As the lights don't detect you bike, as they legally must, they are not working.

Thankyou purplepolly,like i said in the post i always stop at the redlight first and have waited 15mins or so when i first used this root,reported to council who said as you quoted,treat them as not working,now if only wallycat could understand this

 

[wafflycat]

In this case Simon, the highway code is actually on your side

rule 176
You MUST NOT move forward over the white line when the red light is showing. Only go forward when the traffic lights are green if there is room for you to clear the junction safely or you are taking up a position to turn right. If the traffic lights are not working, treat the situation as you would an unmarked junction and proceed with great care

As the lights don't detect you bike, as they legally must, they are not working.

Indeed.

 

[simongrant]

It's not necessary: period?,have you changed your mind now?

I have just repoted the lights again via fixmystreet.com so will see if anything changes,hopefully the lights soon lol

 

[ufkacbln]

If a tree falls down in the woods and no one hears it, does it make a sound?

If a cyclist goes through a red light at four in the morning and no one sees, does it matter?


Obviously if the road is deserted and it's stupid o'clock in the morning, and you aren't going to be caught/annoy other road users, then why not.

If there is one thing that bugs me it's stopping at lights, only to watch another cyclist shooting through.

Which is the same argument used for driving at 100 mph in a 30 mph zone as it "doesn't matter"

 

[wafflycat]

It's not necessary: period?,have you changed your mind now?

I have just repoted the lights again via fixmystreet.com so will see if anything changes,hopefully the lights soon lol

Red lights which are not working cannot be jumped as they are this: not working. There is no need to RLJ. Period.

 

[Dan B]

Blah

 

[simongrant]

Nice climb down wallycat,sorry wafflycat,but technically the light is still on red but knowing they arent gonna change for me i use common sense and proceed with caution.I will again await a response from the council and also get an opinion from the traffic bobby i see most everyday on my way in.

 

[snorri]

If the police just concentrated on real crime maybe this country wouldn't have lost so much faith in them.

Time spent stopping people doing silly things which could result in them killing themselves is an important part of police work.

 

[hackbike 666]

It's not necessary: period?,have you changed your mind now?

I have just repoted the lights again via fixmystreet.com so will see if anything changes,hopefully the lights soon lol

Good idea,there are a set at Stratford which are always a pain as they don't detect me I should complain about them.