The traffic lights on West Bromwich Ringway are the same, especially the ones that control access to the bus station. There are more examples around the Sandwell borough and there seems a genuine drive to stop people getting around (because buses levitate don't they?) Happily I don't have to frequent that utter toilet any more. 

 

 The lights here tend to have a sequence on them and its easy to gauge when it is they'll be changing and it rings true day or night. Just be prepared that if you arrive at a set along The Queensway at just the wrong time you're going to cop for more reds than greens. 

Are you off to that show?

I'm thinking of heading to the national meet tomorrow. Either that or USC (Santa Pod) still haven't decided!

I am indeed, keeping as far away as possible from the Hospital radio shed on wheels and its associated crackling buzzing racket, interspersed by the occasional bit of musical noise too. 

Source of much ranting humour and p*** taking to keep us all amused if nowt else.

 

 

This is always assuming that the field hasn't been swept away by a tidal wave or is under 10' of water from the horrendous weather of today that is.

 

I was considering going down to the Ford show at Silverstone, but nah. 

Edited 2 August, 201411 yr by Mr Ree

It's a bit of strange one this, but this generally.... (not always, but in the main)...  seems to be just a night time problem when the roads are quiet.

 

Why is that?

Edited 2 August, 201411 yr by Mr Ree

Does ANYONE in here have some inside info, or actually work on these damned wretched things?

What are the settings directives?

 

We need to know! 

 

I cannot for the life of me understand with all of todays whizz bang technology, that they cannot be set to change to green if on red and there's nothing coming out of or approaching the opposing junction.

 

A set just down the road from me  turned to red ....(last one of many last night)....as i approached it. Nothing coming from the other direction, and they positively refused to change back to green until a car eventually approached from opposite me.

 

Absolutely time wastingly infuriating!

 

Anyone ever tried to work out just how much time we waste in a year at these bloody things...not counting the ones that actually serve a purpose.

Edited 2 August, 201411 yr by Mr Ree

It's a bit of strange one this, but this generally.... (not always, but in the main)... seems to be just a night time problem when the roads are quiet.

Why is that?

Because your usually waiting for a vehicle from the other side of the lights to come through in the daytime.

Or the go through their normal sequence of operation because theirs a queue at each side.

At night theres only you and they'll all default to red, then change when a car is detected. They just dont change fast enough.

Here's one for you that's boiled my **** today, when you wait for the lights to (eventually) turn green. Then someone in front of you sits there and waves pedestrians over the road until it's just about to turn red and then they nip through, and you have to sit through another sequence.

THEY HAVE THERE OWN GREEN LIGHT!! Arrghhh

Here's one for you that's boiled my **** today, when you wait for the lights to (eventually) turn green. Then someone in front of you sits there and waves pedestrians over the road until it's just about to turn red and then they nip through, and you have to sit through another sequence.

THEY HAVE THERE OWN GREEN LIGHT!! Arrghhh

YES!

iv been guilty of doin this if iv had a tailgater behind me though.

Although sometimes they just go through on red anyway

NAIRN!!!!! just why.... aaaargh!!!!!!

Some of you should try M6 junction roundabouts. The light always default to the slip roads, when all are empty . e.g. early in morning.

Some of you should try M6 junction roundabouts. The light always default to the slip roads, when all are empty . e.g. early in morning.

....and then they invariably stay on red until a car comes towards the green light and then turns red for him!

Absolutely mind bogglingly unbelievable and totally irrational.

 

Has someone authorised all this just to completely hack us all off, 'cus they're succeeding!

 

I mean WHAT is THAT actually all about please,..... anyone?

Shamelessly off topic, but it's MY thread, and yes, like we needed yet ANOTHER supermarket ey? 

 

Chester has the grand total of NO cinemas now.

Not bad for a touristy large city ey? 

 

Even more off topic....Llanerch Park St Asaph classic car show tomoz btw.  :sun:

And, on the same topic, exactly why can you not get back into some Chester hotels after 11PM without getting the night porter's mobile? Staying out after that when you're on holiday is not that unusual! 

How refreshing - I thought it was only me.

 

I can’t even begin to imagine how much of my life I have spent sitting at red traffic lights. I think the little devils have it in for me.

 

I think I get caught 9 out of 10 times. A friend of mine always sails through on green. But he’s also the type of person who wins competitions, premium bonds and gets car dealers ringing him up because they have a customer who is looking for a car in his exact spec and they can’t find one. He ends up with another brand new car for peanuts.

 

I believe when you are born you line up and either get sent down the the lucky queue or unlucky queue.

 

I know what one I ended up in.

No conspiracy, just badly set up.

 

Council buys in lights just like any other commodity, gives some thought to traffic flow passes that to teh supplier that programs the lights then buggers off.

 

Newer ones allegedly will be a bit more intelligent.

 

Council's don't want your car sitting idle at the lights, it pushes up emissions in that area which the EU can fine them for.

No conspiracy, just badly set up.

 

Council buys in lights just like any other commodity, gives some thought to traffic flow passes that to teh supplier that programs the lights then buggers off.

 

Newer ones allegedly will be a bit more intelligent.

 

Council's don't want your car sitting idle at the lights, it pushes up emissions in that area which the EU can fine them for.

Well just how come I've emailed the question twice to the appropriate depts, and absolutely diddly squat has been done to rectify the situation...in fact, it's getting WORSE! 

I lead a transport planning team in a civil engineering consultancy so probbaly have more knowledge than most...

 

Whilst I can’t comment on the specifics of the junction I do know that we do a lot of hard work to make sure that the junctions we design and assess operate as well as they can with minimal delays to traffic and the maximum capacity.

 

Unfortunately, whilst we do this, and often look at a variety of different scenarios thoughout the day (AM peak, Inter Peak, PM peak and Off Peak (evening), we don’t often do the actual programming of the signal controllers.  That is left to the local Highways Authority and their own staff, or those of whichever specialist contractor they use.

 

This often means that whilst we have developed signal phasing and timings that will generally work well for all the scenarios we look at, they aren’t always the ones installed on the controllers - sometimes the programs we supply are never handed over to the guy setting the signals up so they 'guess' and other times the programs are changed to suit various ends.

 

Most signal controllers will adjust timings to suit flows based on detectors cut into the road but that data (number of vehciles, type of vehcile and speed) can be used in different ways – say to to ‘improve' the operation of the signals, to change timings to assist in preventing accidents or, in some cases, to suit a particular end such as slowing speeding traffic, or managing flows into platoons of vehicles so that junctions further downstream can operate better - ie for whatever reason.

 

Most Local Authorities Traffic and Highways Teams unfortunately also have political masters (those local Councillors and Politicians you all groan about) who will invariably have their own view and their own ‘take’ on how things should operate and how traffic should be 'managed' on 'thier' patch.  This means that signals will often be installed to suit these ‘political’ ends – so they’ll have timings that might ‘favour’ one leg over another, or have settings that artificially create queues to discourage use of particular junctions or routes, or even do the sort of thing you are talking about and stop traffic at the dead of night to try and encourage use of other ‘more suitable’ (their terms) routes.

 

I certainly know of a number of junctions that are ‘managed’ to prevent flows and queue build-ups over, say sensitive structures or through residential areas and I also know of some where priority is given to side roads rather than main thoroughfares, some of which are because Councillors live on the side roads concerned…

 

Read into that what you will…   but there certainly isn't a b'big' picture to gain more tax by burning more fuel - quite the opposite at he moment (albeit this is often mostly stifled or warped by local politics).

Edited 4 August, 201411 yr by skomaz

Queensferry by pass where it joins the A550 Welsh Road going towards Wirral and Two Mills anyone?

 

Someone has changed the night time setting on these lights RECENTLY, that merely control a cycle and pedestrian crossing, which see's barely any useage during the daytime, never mind 11 pm at night, as it's out in the wilds.

 

If there's no traffic in front of you, they now ALWAYS turn to red a good quarter of a mile before you reach them, and as you come grinding to yet another time and fuel wasting halt....then they turn instantly back to green!

 

WHY? 

 

Absolutely no safety issues here at all.

 

Tell you, it IS a conspiracy.I'm convinced of it.

 

Don't take this the wrong way, it's just a question!  You wouldn't be over the speed limit, would you?

 

 I'm not aware that lights are used this way in the UK, but they definitely are at some 'black spot' locations in Spain/Portugal, where any approaching traffic that's at an illegal speed will turn the crossing lights red.

 

You could call that a conspiracy:)

Don't take this the wrong way, it's just a question!  You wouldn't be over the speed limit, would you?

 

 I'm not aware that lights are used this way in the UK, but they definitely are at some 'black spot' locations in Spain/Portugal, where any approaching traffic that's at an illegal speed will turn the crossing lights red.

 

You could call that a conspiracy:)

Not taken the wrong way.

As stated previously up there somewhere ^^^^, I've tried approaching at both 10 mph above (when no one else around)  and below.

Makes no difference whatsoever.

Well just how come I've emailed the question twice to the appropriate depts, and absolutely diddly squat has been done to rectify the situation...in fact, it's getting WORSE! 

 

Short answer? No one gives a ****

 

Unless it's a government measure reported back to central government it won't have any resource put to fixing it because that diverts resource from other reportable areas.

 

Try writing to a local councillor, usually has more effect than the council officers.

Edited 4 August, 201411 yr by Aspman

There is a set of lights in Newtown (outside Lidl) that when I approach at 0430 always seem to be at red, even though the road I am on is the straight, main route. When I queried it with the powers that be I was told that it was to ensure that speeds were kept down. Sounds logical.

Try Southampton for traffic lights. Bloody everywhere. I read one report a while back that said there were more per mile than London. There's a few junctions where they fail from time to time. Left to their own devices, drivers get on with it and traffic flows better and safer. Go figure :wonder:

I lead a transport planning team in a civil engineering consultancy so probbaly have more knowledge than most...

 

Whilst I can’t comment on the specifics of the junction I do know that we do a lot of hard work to make sure that the junctions we design and assess operate as well as they can with minimal delays to traffic and the maximum capacity.

 

Unfortunately, whilst we do this, and often look at a variety of different scenarios thoughout the day (AM peak, Inter Peak, PM peak and Off Peak (evening), we don’t often do the actual programming of the signal controllers.  That is left to the local Highways Authority and their own staff, or those of whichever specialist contractor they use.

 

This often means that whilst we have developed signal phasing and timings that will generally work well for all the scenarios we look at, they aren’t always the ones installed on the controllers - sometimes the programs we supply are never handed over to the guy setting the signals up so they 'guess' and other times the programs are changed to suit various ends.

 

Most signal controllers will adjust timings to suit flows based on detectors cut into the road but that data (number of vehciles, type of vehcile and speed) can be used in different ways – say to to ‘improve' the operation of the signals, to change timings to assist in preventing accidents or, in some cases, to suit a particular end such as slowing speeding traffic, or managing flows into platoons of vehicles so that junctions further downstream can operate better - ie for whatever reason.

 

Most Local Authorities Traffic and Highways Teams unfortunately also have political masters (those local Councillors and Politicians you all groan about) who will invariably have their own view and their own ‘take’ on how things should operate and how traffic should be 'managed' on 'thier' patch.  This means that signals will often be installed to suit these ‘political’ ends – so they’ll have timings that might ‘favour’ one leg over another, or have settings that artificially create queues to discourage use of particular junctions or routes, or even do the sort of thing you are talking about and stop traffic at the dead of night to try and encourage use of other ‘more suitable’ (their terms) routes.

 

I certainly know of a number of junctions that are ‘managed’ to prevent flows and queue build-ups over, say sensitive structures or through residential areas and I also know of some where priority is given to side roads rather than main thoroughfares, some of which are because Councillors live on the side roads concerned…

 

Read into that what you will…   but there certainly isn't a b'big' picture to gain more tax by burning more fuel - quite the opposite at he moment (albeit this is often mostly stifled or warped by local politics).

 

So. You seem to know much about this subject then, so do tell us all, doesn't it totally wick you off at night time too when the lights change to red as you approach them with nothing trying to exit from the controlled junction?

If so, have you mentioned and queried it with the powers that be, and if so, what's the answer they come up with?

 

8 sets of lights tonight, and 3 turned red as i approached them at below the speed limit. 

Edited 4 August, 201411 yr by Mr Ree

I lead a transport planning team in a civil engineering consultancy so probbaly have more knowledge than most...

 

Whilst I can’t comment on the specifics of the junction I do know that we do a lot of hard work to make sure that the junctions we design and assess operate as well as they can with minimal delays to traffic and the maximum capacity.

 

Unfortunately, whilst we do this, and often look at a variety of different scenarios thoughout the day (AM peak, Inter Peak, PM peak and Off Peak (evening), we don’t often do the actual programming of the signal controllers.  That is left to the local Highways Authority and their own staff, or those of whichever specialist contractor they use.

 

This often means that whilst we have developed signal phasing and timings that will generally work well for all the scenarios we look at, they aren’t always the ones installed on the controllers - sometimes the programs we supply are never handed over to the guy setting the signals up so they 'guess' and other times the programs are changed to suit various ends.

 

Most signal controllers will adjust timings to suit flows based on detectors cut into the road but that data (number of vehciles, type of vehcile and speed) can be used in different ways – say to to ‘improve' the operation of the signals, to change timings to assist in preventing accidents or, in some cases, to suit a particular end such as slowing speeding traffic, or managing flows into platoons of vehicles so that junctions further downstream can operate better - ie for whatever reason.

 

Most Local Authorities Traffic and Highways Teams unfortunately also have political masters (those local Councillors and Politicians you all groan about) who will invariably have their own view and their own ‘take’ on how things should operate and how traffic should be 'managed' on 'thier' patch.  This means that signals will often be installed to suit these ‘political’ ends – so they’ll have timings that might ‘favour’ one leg over another, or have settings that artificially create queues to discourage use of particular junctions or routes, or even do the sort of thing you are talking about and stop traffic at the dead of night to try and encourage use of other ‘more suitable’ (their terms) routes.

 

I certainly know of a number of junctions that are ‘managed’ to prevent flows and queue build-ups over, say sensitive structures or through residential areas and I also know of some where priority is given to side roads rather than main thoroughfares, some of which are because Councillors live on the side roads concerned…

 

Read into that what you will…   but there certainly isn't a b'big' picture to gain more tax by burning more fuel - quite the opposite at he moment (albeit this is often mostly stifled or warped by local politics).

 

Totally struggling with that one, and sounds like a load of waffle to me.

 

So, I try and find routes with no lights that may entail an extra 5 miles on my 3 mile journey?

Yea, REALLY makes sense that doesn't..

 

NOT having a pop at you btw, as I appreciate you don't actually dictate how they are set up.

What confuses me, is this.

Cars are manufactured to ever higher specifications in order to lower emissions and meet the latest standards. Euro 6 etc etc.

But then its okay to make everybody stop in the middle of the night, on an empty road, for no reason at all.

Your using your brakes to slow down, which isnt good for the environment, your engine is idling and wasting fuel while you wait, then you're using more fuel to accelerate back up to speed again.

Why is that okay? Its just wasteful.

I'm not a green freak or anything, not in the slightest, but i could be home faster and save fuel etc.

Just seems like a pointless excersize.

I lead a transport planning team in a civil engineering consultancy so probbaly have more knowledge than most...

Whilst I can’t comment on the specifics of the junction I do know that we do a lot of hard work to make sure that the junctions we design and assess operate as well as they can with minimal delays to traffic and the maximum capacity.

Unfortunately, whilst we do this, and often look at a variety of different scenarios thoughout the day (AM peak, Inter Peak, PM peak and Off Peak (evening), we don’t often do the actual programming of the signal controllers. That is left to the local Highways Authority and their own staff, or those of whichever specialist contractor they use.

This often means that whilst we have developed signal phasing and timings that will generally work well for all the scenarios we look at, they aren’t always the ones installed on the controllers - sometimes the programs we supply are never handed over to the guy setting the signals up so they 'guess' and other times the programs are changed to suit various ends.

Most signal controllers will adjust timings to suit flows based on detectors cut into the road but that data (number of vehciles, type of vehcile and speed) can be used in different ways – say to to ‘improve' the operation of the signals, to change timings to assist in preventing accidents or, in some cases, to suit a particular end such as slowing speeding traffic, or managing flows into platoons of vehicles so that junctions further downstream can operate better - ie for whatever reason.

Most Local Authorities Traffic and Highways Teams unfortunately also have political masters (those local Councillors and Politicians you all groan about) who will invariably have their own view and their own ‘take’ on how things should operate and how traffic should be 'managed' on 'thier' patch. This means that signals will often be installed to suit these ‘political’ ends – so they’ll have timings that might ‘favour’ one leg over another, or have settings that artificially create queues to discourage use of particular junctions or routes, or even do the sort of thing you are talking about and stop traffic at the dead of night to try and encourage use of other ‘more suitable’ (their terms) routes.

I certainly know of a number of junctions that are ‘managed’ to prevent flows and queue build-ups over, say sensitive structures or through residential areas and I also know of some where priority is given to side roads rather than main thoroughfares, some of which are because Councillors live on the side roads concerned…

Read into that what you will… but there certainly isn't a b'big' picture to gain more tax by burning more fuel - quite the opposite at he moment (albeit this is often mostly stifled or warped by local politics).

Oo you might know this answer to this question then mate..

Does it make the lights change faster if you flash your lights as you approach?

Or is that just a myth?

That'll depend on the type of lights I'd have thought. People do it because lights with sensors on top to 'see' cars might see the car sooner and thus change quicker. Obviously if the sensors are in the floor it's totally pointless