Lights stuck on red - how long do you wait?

[FMOB]

So the traffic lights are on a never-ending red, how long do you wait before deciding they are broken and you should drive through them?

[Sebring440]

FMOB said:

So the traffic lights are on a never-ending red, how long do you wait before deciding they are broken and you should drive through them?

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=23&t=1978220

[xx99xx]

Time of day? Volume of traffic? What kind of junction/roundabout? Temp or perm lights?

[FMOB]

xx99xx said:

Time of day? Volume of traffic? What kind of junction/roundabout? Temp or perm lights?

9pm saturday night, light traffic, crossroads, perm lights working normally except the one controlling the direction I was travelling in. All other directions had traffic flow working normally as you could follow the sequencing and watch vehicles driving through the junction.

[Bright Halo]

FMOB said:

xx99xx said:

Time of day? Volume of traffic? What kind of junction/roundabout? Temp or perm lights?

9pm saturday night, light traffic, crossroads, perm lights working normally except the one controlling the direction I was travelling in. All other directions had traffic flow working normally as you could follow the sequencing and watch vehicles driving through the junction.

You’re not still there are you?

[Pica-Pica]

Bright Halo said:

FMOB said:

xx99xx said:

Time of day? Volume of traffic? What kind of junction/roundabout? Temp or perm lights?

9pm saturday night, light traffic, crossroads, perm lights working normally except the one controlling the direction I was travelling in. All other directions had traffic flow working normally as you could follow the sequencing and watch vehicles driving through the junction.

You’re not still there are you?

Turn round and reverse through.

[johnboy1975]

FMOB said:

xx99xx said:

Time of day? Volume of traffic? What kind of junction/roundabout? Temp or perm lights?

9pm saturday night, light traffic, crossroads, perm lights working normally except the one controlling the direction I was travelling in. All other directions had traffic flow working normally as you could follow the sequencing and watch vehicles driving through the junction.

If you know the pattern, go on your turn I guess - if the others are working normally (after two ish full cycles to confirm??)

Probably the wrong answer (and I wouldn't like to try at rush hour).

Would you get done on the cameras if present, and would you win your appeal?

[Alex@POD]

I had to do that a few times, one of the times I remember I was on my motorbike, at a filter lane, and the ground sensor would not "sense" the bike. After 2 sequences to understand who goes when, I went when it was clear.

[Mr.Chips]

Knowing my luck, however long I waited and however many cycles I had waited, I can virtually guarantee that,when I do decide to go, someone will come the other way giving me abuse!

[Bright Halo]

What you don’t know if you can’t see the other end of the roadworks is whether the lights are cycling the other end or permanently stuck on green.
I’d give it a few mins and then proceed with caution, with hazards on maybe?

[ATG]

Round here roadworks lights get stuck on red at both ends all the time. Could be an urban myth, but I was told they default to that behaviour if they sense enough cars driving through reds ... I.e. the lights interpret people driving through reds as there being a problem with the lights, so they default to red. No idea if that's true, but it wouldn't be a bad design. And it would explain why the lights round here are regularly stuck on red because no one pays any attention to them anyway, particularly at night or in the early hours. Really quiet rural roads, so the chance of meeting anyone coming the other way is really slim.

[freedman]

Bright Halo said:

What you don’t know if you can’t see the other end of the roadworks is whether the lights are cycling the other end or permanently stuck on green.
I’d give it a few mins and then proceed with caution, with hazards on maybe?

It’s a regular junction, not roadworks

[caley64]

ATG said:

Round here roadworks lights get stuck on red at both ends all the time. Could be an urban myth, but I was told they default to that behaviour if they sense enough cars driving through reds ... I.e. the lights interpret people driving through reds as there being a problem with the lights, so they default to red. No idea if that's true, but it wouldn't be a bad design. And it would explain why the lights round here are regularly stuck on red because no one pays any attention to them anyway, particularly at night or in the early hours. Really quiet rural roads, so the chance of meeting anyone coming the other way is really slim.

I've phoned 101 before to report roadworks traffic lights stuck on red. According to the operator I spoke to, they default to red when batteries are low.

[Secret lemonade drinker]

I turn around and find an alternative route

[EmailAddress]

Wait until the dirty A3 with the grille like this aggressively passes and follow them through

[Master Bean]

At that time of night about a minute. Maybe slightly longer in my car but about that on my bicyclette.

[Gary29]

Two hours and fifty three minutes.

[RazerSauber]

When I first left my local German supermarket that may or may not be similar to the word "small", I was on my motorbike. The exit is at a cross roads. I watched 3 cycles of other traffic going through with no luck on me being seen so I waited for a red light and went between cycles. Wasn't waiting any longer. I've since discovered that it's a problem and not a blip. Cyclists and motorcyclists have no chance. I have to pull through the red light and get a car behind me to approach the line to trigger the lights.

[Yellow Lizud]

Gary29 said:

Two hours and fifty three minutes.

Forty Two.

(Depending what mode I'm in, that might be milliseconds, seconds, minutes or hours!)

[CypSIdders]

Alex@POD said:

I had to do that a few times, one of the times I remember I was on my motorbike, at a filter lane, and the ground sensor would not "sense" the bike. After 2 sequences to understand who goes when, I went when it was clear.

This is precisely how I obtained my first ever penalty points, many years ago.
Waiting at a crossroads, at 10pm, my bike wouldn't set off the sensor.
I wanted to turn left, I waited and waited and waited, there were no other vehicles on any of the other roads.
After waiting for at least 5 mins no lights had changed on any of the roads.
I decided to turn Ieft, just as a motorcycle cop emerged from the police station, a 100yds behind me.
I bet he'd pulled the same manoeuvre countless times.