# Traffic Lights



## YoungOldUn (Apr 12, 2011)

I don't know if it is just me or where I live but the number of folk who ignore red traffic lights seems to be on the increase. I have now started to count how many cars 'go through on red' and I think the record is 7 cars! It is so bad that when the lights change to green (in my favour) I now look both ways to make sure no one else is going to run the red light. I have even had one guy blasting his horn and gesticulating at me for daring to proceed across the junction when he was 'running a red'!

What are other folks experiences?


----------



## Gazzer (Jun 12, 2010)

in cheltenham the newer lights all have camera's attached Jim so folks get to know what they can or can't jump. but in general yeah pretty much the same here bud.


----------



## John-H (Jul 13, 2005)

Definitely more of it about - especially cyclists


----------



## brittan (May 18, 2007)

YoungOldUn said:


> It is so bad that when the lights change to green (in my favour) I now look both ways to make sure no one else is going to run the red light.
> What are other folks experiences?


Yes, I do that and have done for some time.

I'm also very wary of the car behind when approaching a green light. Braking, even gently, when the lights change to amber can be risky when the following driver clearly expects you to ignore that amber means STOP.

Have others gone through on amber only to see 1 or 2 cars behind follow suit?

On one occasion I braked firmly for an amber light and I heard the squeal of tyres from behind as the driver locked the wheels. Luckily, the junction design allowed me ease off the brakes and let the car roll 20ft or so over the white line and give the car behind enough room to stop.
Strangely the young lad driving then hopped out and swapped places with the older lady (early 30s) who was in the passenger seat.


----------



## Gazzer (Jun 12, 2010)

brittan said:


> YoungOldUn said:
> 
> 
> > It is so bad that when the lights change to green (in my favour) I now look both ways to make sure no one else is going to run the red light.
> ...


a quick change of undies first before he got back in ehh Brian lol


----------



## j8keith (Jun 26, 2009)

John-H said:


> Definitely more of it about - especially cyclists


+1, I'm sure that it is not intentional, its just that those funny trousers they wear restrict their brains.


----------



## CWM3 (Mar 4, 2012)

You want to see blatant disregard for every known law under the Road Traffic Act, just commute up and down the Commercial Rd in East London 52 weeks a year....peeps don't jump red traffic lights, they just ignore them totally....seems the local populace are untouchable


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

I've noticed an increase in people going through reds too. And I've had people beep at me for slowing down when the lights change to amber. Everyone seems to have a massive sense of entitlement these days. If the car in front goes through the lights, then they think they deserve to go through the lights too. And the next car. And the next.

I've beeped at people who have obviously run a red light, as they've almost hit me as I've entered the junction on a green light, and they've actually got annoyed with me - and this is the real problem - no matter how bad someones driving is, they'll always think they're in the right. This means they'll never improve.


----------



## ChrisF (Jan 29, 2013)

CWM3 said:


> You want to see blatant disregard for every known law under the Road Traffic Act, just commute up and down the Commercial Rd in East London 52 weeks a year....peeps don't jump red traffic lights, they just ignore them totally....seems the local populace are untouchable


That's annoying as my missus got a speeding ticket there for 35 mph in a 30 at 6 a.m. in the morning when it was nearly empty.


----------



## ChrisF (Jan 29, 2013)

Spandex said:


> I've noticed an increase in people going through reds too. And I've had people beep at me for slowing down when the lights change to amber. Everyone seems to have a massive sense of entitlement these days. If the car in front goes through the lights, then they think they deserve to go through the lights too. And the next car. And the next.
> 
> I've beeped at people who have obviously run a red light, as they've almost hit me as I've entered the junction on a green light, and they've actually got annoyed with me - and this is the real problem - no matter how bad someones driving is, they'll always think they're in the right. This means they'll never improve.


I rarely use my horn ( :? ) but the other week a guy cut me up so bad I did; he then went mental and held down his horn for ages, gesticulating and generally blowing a fuse. I then used a bit of the old 3.2 power to sweep past him and he looked apoplectic - my wife said he looked like he was going to have a heart attack (she is usually the first to criticise my driving, but only because she thinks she understands mini roundabouts and that I don't). But that's another story...


----------



## John-H (Jul 13, 2005)

Oh... mini roundabouts! Did you know the right of way round a mini roundabout doesn't exist on the roundabout itself but extends 100 yards along the road to your right or left for the person hurtling towards you with no intention of slowing down?

I once came onto a small roundabout and notised a lorry coming from my left far too fast. I stopped on the roundabout before crossing his path. He noticed last lecond and locked up all his wheels in clouds of smoke and came to a juddering halt with his cab window right in front of me. He gave me a charming smile and a disarming jolly laugh. So that was alright then :roll:


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

There's a mini roundabout on my road and for some reason it seems to completely baffle most drivers. I have no idea why (it's not an unusual junction) but people using it forget the normal priority rules and just sit there staring at each other. Quite often, I'll arrive at the roundabout and the person to my right won't be moving... Then when they realise I'm waiting for them, they'll wave me over. It's all very polite, but a bit unnecessary.


----------



## John-H (Jul 13, 2005)

Spandex said:


> There's a mini roundabout on my road and for some reason it seems to completely baffle most drivers. I have no idea why (it's not an unusual junction) but people using it forget the normal priority rules and just sit there staring at each other. Quite often, I'll arrive at the roundabout and the person to my right won't be moving... Then when they realise I'm waiting for them, they'll wave me over. It's all very polite, but a bit unnecessary.


That at least sounds safer than the express train out of my way mentality. Quite civilised really. Perhaps the drivers could get out and offer each other cups of tea whilst deciding priority?


----------



## ChrisF (Jan 29, 2013)

John-H said:


> Oh... mini roundabouts! Did you know the right of way round a mini roundabout doesn't exist on the roundabout itself but extends 100 yards along the road to your right or left for the person hurtling towards you with no intention of slowing down?
> 
> I once came onto a small roundabout and notised a lorry coming from my left far too fast. I stopped on the roundabout before crossing his path. He noticed last lecond and locked up all his wheels in clouds of smoke and came to a juddering halt with his cab window right in front of me. He gave me a charming smile and a disarming jolly laugh. So that was alright then :roll:


Yeah that's pretty much what my wife thinks. I suffer from the illusion that someone who gets to the roundabout before or at the same time as me to the right has right of way, but if I get there first and am on the rab first then I have right of way. According to her I should stop in case anyone within about 1/4 mile might possibly be coming from the right.


----------



## NoMark (Jul 6, 2011)

John-H said:


> I once came onto a small roundabout and notised a lorry coming from my left far too fast. I stopped on the roundabout before crossing his path. He noticed last lecond and locked up all his wheels in clouds of smoke and came to a juddering halt with his cab window right in front of me. He gave me a charming smile and a disarming jolly laugh. So that was alright then :roll:


This.

I have one on my way to work, I came onto the roundabout one morning when exactly this happened, except in my case the truck driver wasn't so polite, he blew a gasket, horn blaring and gesticulating at me as if I was in the wrong! :twisted:

There was a time when truck drivers were referred to as the knights of the road, not any more methinks. 

Mark.


----------



## burns (Jun 2, 2009)

My boss is terrible for going straight through red lights. A couple of weeks ago he went through a red light whilst driving his DB9 in high winds. A moment later, a tree in a churchyard fell across the road, straight across his bonnet. £10,500-worth of damage!  He wouldn't have been there had he obeyed the traffic signal. Lesson learnt? Possibly not :roll:


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

a few points here,, amber does not mean STOP,, it means caution and as such it is perfectly acceptable, and legal, to go throo and it is stupid to brake hard as this may well cause a rearending.,,, mini roundabouts,,, as so many people , ok actually stoping short of sharing a cup of tea whilst deciding who has r o w , often it would apear that they are waiting for a written agreement as to who should proceed first,, this suits me fine as i normally aproach the mini roundabout, in the same manner as a normal roundabout in that if anybody is dithering then i just go,,,not that i take much of their advice,,but on the one car driving lesson i did take,, some years ago now !! :? , my instructor told me that if i have right of way then i should take it,,,,,, sound advice .........oh and i have been in with some people who habitually jump red lights without so much as a glance to see if anything is coming,, a very disturbing experience !!!  ,, i did get cought once in Manila, it cost me 15 pd bribe to the policeman !!


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

roddy said:


> a few points here,, amber does not mean STOP,, it means caution and as such it is perfectly acceptable, and legal, to go throo and it is stupid to brake hard as this may well cause a rearending.


I don't think anyone's talking about people going through on amber. It's the people who cruise through on a clear red that cause the problems and it seems to be on the increase. It would be handy though, if people didn't start accelerating hard as they see the lights change to amber because it means that if they dont make it through by the time the lights do change to red, they're already going too fast to stop and have to just keep going.

Oh, and amber does mean stop, according to the highway code. You're only supposed to continue if you're already over the line or if it would be unsafe to stop at the line.


----------



## brittan (May 18, 2007)

Well the Highway Code says:

_AMBER means "Stop' at the stop line. You may go on only if the AMBER appears after you have crossed the stop line or are so
close to it that to pull up might cause an accident"_

The trouble is that many, many people don't know that AMBER means STOP and in trying to 'beat the lights' can easily end up colliding with the car in front if the driver of that car does know what he's doing.


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

so since when did amber mean stop,, unless they have rewritten the highway code ,, amber means caution and be prepared to stop if nessessary,, red is stop if you have not crossed the line,,,, are you suggesting that the two lights are for the same purpose,,, i dont think so :?


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

roddy said:


> so since when did amber mean stop,, unless they have rewritten the highway code ,, amber means caution and be prepared to stop if nessessary,, red is stop if you have not crossed the line,,,, are you suggesting that the two lights are for the same purpose,,, i dont think so :?


It's always meant stop. Go look it up if you don't believe us. They don't mean the same thing. Red means stop with no exceptions - even if you've crossed the line, you're supposed to stop, as you might still hit something coming through the junction. Amber means stop if it's safe, and if you've not already crossed the line.

You really are supposed to stop on an amber light, and I always do unless it changed to amber too late for me to slow down safely.

<edit>just for you, I found a scan of a 1946 highway code. Page 12 of the PDF shows the text for amber lights hasn't changed to the present day:

http://medical-reports.com/Highwaycode1946.pdf


----------



## John-H (Jul 13, 2005)

I was going to say my 2001 copy says the same thing but I won't now :wink:

You could say amber means stop with caution.


----------



## brittan (May 18, 2007)

roddy said:


> so since when did amber mean stop,, unless they have rewritten the highway code ,, amber means caution and be prepared to stop if nessessary,, red is stop if you have not crossed the line,,,, are you suggesting that the two lights are for the same purpose,,, i dont think so :?


Here's another point for you roddy, again from the Highway Code (but not the 1946 edition):

_RED AND AMBER also means 'Stop'. Do not pass through or start until GREEN shows._


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

John-H said:


> I was going to say my 2001 copy says the same thing but I won't now :wink:
> 
> You could say amber means stop with caution.


i think it means proceed with caution


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

brittan said:


> roddy said:
> 
> 
> > so since when did amber mean stop,, unless they have rewritten the highway code ,, amber means caution and be prepared to stop if nessessary,, red is stop if you have not crossed the line,,,, are you suggesting that the two lights are for the same purpose,,, i dont think so :?
> ...


cheeky begger ,,,,,,,,


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

and anyway,, the highway code is not the law, it is only an advisory,,,, it is not against the law to go throo on amber


----------



## brittan (May 18, 2007)

roddy said:


> and anyway,, the highway code is not the law, it is only an advisory,,,,


That's not entirely accurate; at the beginning of the document the Highway Code explains:

_Many of the rules in The Highway Code are legal requirements, and if you disobey these rules you are committing a criminal offence. You may be fined, given penalty points on your licence or be disqualified from driving. In the most serious cases you may be sent to prison. Such rules are identified by the use of the words 'MUST/MUST NOT'. In addition, the rule includes an abbreviated reference to the legislation which creates the offence._



roddy said:


> it is not against the law to go throo on amber


That is correct, in the right circumstance. However 


roddy said:


> i think it means proceed with caution


is clearly against common sense.


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

just because something in the highway code is also a legal requirment does not mean that the highway code is legal requirment !!,, i would have thot that basic common sense would have told you that,,,,


----------



## ChrisF (Jan 29, 2013)

roddy said:


> just because something in the highway code is also a legal requirment does not mean that the highway code is legal requirment !!,, i would have thot that basic common sense would have told you that,,,,


The Highway Code can be used as evidence as to whether driving is careless or dangerous. So if you accelerate through an amber light when you could have stopped, you could potentially be charged with careless driving and if you caused an accident it would be very hard to claim it wasn't your fault.


----------



## John-H (Jul 13, 2005)

roddy said:


> John-H said:
> 
> 
> > I was going to say my 2001 copy says the same thing but I won't now :wink:
> ...


The "caution" bit means proceed on amber if to stop is unsafe.

Basically amber means stop if safe and reasonable to do so because the lights are just about to change to red. It would be unsafe to stop if someone was close behind you and you were so close to the lights when amber showed that you could get rear ended. If nobody was behind you it would be safe to stop so you should - with the "reasonable" proviso that you don't have to lock up your wheels in clouds of smoke to do so (Ok it doesn't say that but let's be reasonable). So according to the wording it would be wrong to proceed if the exercise of caution did not warrant proceeding. It does not mean you MUST stop on amber.

Although the Highway Code itself is not statute it does refer to the law. This rule on traffic lights is a legal requirement. Early on in the Highway code it explains that the word *MUST* indicates legal requirements (referenced) and says, "You *MUST* obay all traffic light signals" refering to the page with the previous quoted explanation with wording that's not changed since 1946 (Spandex :lol: ) and gives the statutory reference "Laws RTA 1988 sect 36 , TSRGD regs 10, 15, 16, 25, 26 & 33"

Now let's talk about zebra crossings and what you should do when someone is stood stationary on the pavement next to one. Should you stop? I love the bit where it says you shouldn't harass pedestrians by edging forward and revving your engine :lol:


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

And here's a handy quote from a FAQ on motorlawyers.co.uk, a site which specialises in legal representation for motoring offences:



> I went through on amber. There was a Police Officer who stopped me and has alleged I went through on red, so it is my word against his. Can I fight the allegation?
> You can dispute the allegation, but the mere fact that the lights were not red, does not provide you with a defence. If you crossed on amber, you have still committed the offence, unless you can show that it was unsafe to stop. If the Police Officer can convince the Court that there was no reason why you should not have been able to stop on amber, you could be convicted. The fact that it is his word against yours does not prevent a prosecution, although clearly, the outcome will depend heavily on each party's version of events/credibility.


It may be common practice these days for people to accelerate to get through an amber light but, unfortunately, common practice and common sense are far from being the same thing.


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

And Roddy, the reason it's sensible to stop on amber is because you don't get any other warnings before it changes to red. If it changes to amber as you're 10ft from the line, travelling at 30mph, you can continue driving, because theres no way to safely stop in time. If you treat amber as a green (but with caution, whatever that means) and it changes to red when you're 10ft from the line, travelling at 30mph, you've basically deliberately created a situation where you have to drive through a red light.

"proceed with caution" is a redundant situation. You should always be proceeding with caution through any junction.


----------



## rich2891 (Feb 10, 2013)

I see lots of people going through red lights on a daily basis - mostly on road work traffic lights.
Lol at the people who don't think amber means prepare to stop, the person that ran into the back of my BMW asked me why I didn't just go through the light. Well the camera on top of the light may be a good reason why I didn't.

I personally think the standards of driving has dropped dramatically in the 20 odd years I've been driving, from people thinking that overtaking a car on their side of the road means I should stop / move over / slow for them or forcing themselves / thinking have an automatic right to pull into a non existent space coming out of a junction. 
Moan over

Richard


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

spandy,, i think you have created a muddled scinario there,, if you go throo a red light , for whatever reason that is accepted as an offence and one must drive acordingly to make allowance for an aproaching light to change,,, obviously if you are far enough back when it goes to amber then you have to prepare to stop because it will be red by the time you get to it , the amber meaning that one must prepare to stop if required, ( by the light turning to red )
the H/C states that we " must abide by traffic signals " , well obviously, but that in itself is not specifying what the law is,,,
the case from the lawyers thingmy , the driver was not being charged with either dangerous or going throo an amber, but quite specifically going throo a red , with no reference to " dangerous",, 
and !!  , whist everyone else is practicing stating the obvious and being pedantic, (  ), i might add that " proceeding with caution " is not a redundant term and shoud be practiced at all times and not just when going throo a junction.. :wink:


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

roddy said:


> spandy,, i think you have created a muddled scinario there,, if you go throo a red light , for whatever reason that is accepted as an offence and one must drive acordingly to make allowance for an aproaching light to change,,, obviously if you are far enough back when it goes to amber then you have to prepare to stop because it will be red by the time you get to it , the amber meaning that one must prepare to stop if required, ( by the light turning to red )


I don't really understand your point. I'm saying that the only warning you have that lights are changing to red is the preceding amber. So if you don't stop on amber, how can you be sure it won't turn red just before you cross the line? You've already decided to drive through your only warning.


roddy said:


> the H/C states that we " must abide by traffic signals " , well obviously, but that in itself is not specifying what the law is,,,


The Highway Code states much more than that. It says you should stop on an amber light, unless you're already over the line, or unless it's not safe to stop. If you don't like the highway code's wording, that's fine, but the law does say the same thing. By driving though an amber light you could safely have stopped at, you *are* committing an offence.


roddy said:


> the case from the lawyers thingmy , the driver was not being charged with either dangerous or going throo an amber, but quite specifically going throo a red , with no reference to " dangerous",,


Did you read the rest of their answer? Although the driver was being charged with going through a red, the lawyers answer said that it's not a defence to say it changed after you went over the line because going through an amber light is also an offence unless you can demonstrate that it would not have been safe to stop.


roddy said:


> and !!  , whist everyone else is practicing stating the obvious and being pedantic, (  ), i might add that " proceeding with caution " is not a redundant term and shoud be practiced at all times and not just when going throo a junction.. :wink:


I meant it's redundant precisely *because* it's what everyone should be practising at all times. *Saying it* is redundant. If anything, green means 'proceed with caution' and amber means 'stop with caution'.


----------



## Gazzer (Jun 12, 2010)

My father taught me to drive and on any set of lights that hasn't just turned green always be prepared to stop. So that is how I drive, and has always kept me safe and unprosecuted


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

of course it is accepted that you must approach all lights prepared for them turning red and being able to stop if / when they do so,, that is not an issue,( i am sure ), the issue is the legality of going throo on amber,,,, i am not discussing the saftey aspect, which despite , i would have thot, being obvious (  ) is being repeated again and again,,, i have never heard of or have experience of anybody being charged with going throo an amber light,,, maybe someone can show me otherwise :wink:,,, show me the law that states it is illegal to go throo a n amber,, the HC can say what the hell it likes, that does not make anything " a law "..( advisery perhaps )


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

roddy said:


> of course it is accepted that you must approach all lights prepared for them turning red and being able to stop if / when they do so,, that is not an issue,( i am sure ), the issue is the legality of going throo on amber,,,, i am not discussing the saftey aspect, which despite , i would have thot, being obvious (  ) is being repeated again and again,,, i have never heard of or have experience of anybody being charged with going throo an amber light,,, maybe someone can show me otherwise :wink:,,, show me the law that states it is illegal to go throo a n amber,, the HC can say what the hell it likes, that does not make anything " a law "..( advisery perhaps )


I haven't found a link to the actual law yet (but I'll keep looking), but have a look at this page:

http://www.hilldickinson.com/downlo...nd_publications/insurance/19_august_2011.aspx

<edit>Found the direct link:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2002/3113/regulation/36/made


> (e) the amber signal shall, when shown alone, convey the same prohibition as the red signal, except that, as respects any vehicle which is so close to the stop line that it cannot safely be stopped without proceeding beyond the stop line, it shall convey the same indication as the green signal or green arrow signal which was shown immediately before it;


Good enough?


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

Gazzer said:


> My father taught me to drive and on any set of lights that hasn't just turned green always be prepared to stop. So that is how I drive, and has always kept me safe and unprosecuted


Exactly... Green is 'prepare to stop'. Amber and/or red are 'stop'.


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

Spandex said:


> Gazzer said:
> 
> 
> > My father taught me to drive and on any set of lights that hasn't just turned green always be prepared to stop. So that is how I drive, and has always kept me safe and unprosecuted
> ...


nonsense mate !!!


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

green . = go
amber. = go, if you dont hit anyone
red..... = go , if no one sees you


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

No comment on the law you asked people to post?


----------



## YoungOldUn (Apr 12, 2011)

When I was taught to drive (48 years ago) I was told a Green light meant proceed with caution (Because some stupid twit could have ignored their Amber or Red light on their part of the junction), Amber meant stop (and at that time there were plenty of traffic police about and people were pulled up and cautioned for ignoring Amber lights), finally Red meant stop at all cost.

It is because of the number of death wish drivers going through on Red that I started this thread never thinking that anyone belonging to the forum might belong to this group :?


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

strange,, i have just had a quick glance throo these posts and can not find anyone who is actually condoning driving blindly throo red lights,,,, :? ,,, perhaps also strangely, i dont see much of this type of behavour, ( just what sensationalist term was used by the OP escapes me for the moment ),, perhaps we are just a different type of driver up here...anyway, take care,, it seems you all need as much caution as you can muster :wink:


----------



## Gazzer (Jun 12, 2010)

YoungOldUn said:


> When I was taught to drive (48 years ago) I was told a Green light meant proceed with caution (Because some stupid twit could have ignored their Amber or Red light on their part of the junction), Amber meant stop (and at that time there were plenty of traffic police about and people were pulled up and cautioned for ignoring Amber lights), finally Red meant stop at all cost.
> 
> It is because of the number of death wish drivers going through on Red that I started this thread never thinking that anyone belonging to the forum might belong to this group :?


Hi jim, been a while m8ee. Ok so lets be open and honest, we are dealing with human drivers who can be very erratic and unreliable to say the least!! So even on green you must be carefull and still look left and right for the one person that wasn't concentrating at all and jumped the lights.


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

Spandex said:


> No comment on the law you asked people to post?


thank you spandy,, once again you are the daddy when it comes to finding the apropriate facts,,,,,, i am genuinely surprised to see this ( evry day is a school day  ) as i was always taught that the amber was to tell the driver to be prepared to stop when the light changes to red......R


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

roddy said:


> perhaps we are just a different type of driver up here


The kind who don't know the laws regarding something as basic and commonplace as a traffic light? :wink:


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

What exactly does 'preparing to stop' involve? Aren't you always prepared to stop?

If you're driving along and a light ahead changes to amber, at what point do you actually brake? If you don't brake (because you plan on driving through on amber) and it changes to red when you're 5ft from the line, what do you do? I'm genuinely interested, because that's not how I approach traffic lights.


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

ha ha,,ok,, we dont claim to be perfect, :lol: ,,,, but our roads are much more pleasant and seemingly a safer place to be on than what yours are ,,


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

its not rocket science,, :roll: it depends on how far you are from the lights , what speed you are doing , other traffic and any other relevant conditions,, :?


----------



## Gazzer (Jun 12, 2010)

Spandex said:


> What exactly does 'preparing to stop' involve? Aren't you always prepared to stop?
> 
> If you're driving along and a light ahead changes to amber, at what point do you actually brake? If you don't brake (because you plan on driving through on amber) and it changes to red when you're 5ft from the line, what do you do? I'm genuinely interested, because that's not how I approach traffic lights.


Ok from my point of view in my pickup loaded with a ton of goods on the back. I am very carefull on approaching lights and generally slow down even if on green just in case they go amber. And yet continually I get drivers sat on my arse Behring a 3.5 ton vehicle that isn't going to stop very quickly and also bloody solid if they hit into it.


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

roddy said:


> its not rocket science,, :roll: it depends on how far you are from the lights , what speed you are doing , other traffic and any other relevant conditions,, :?


Surely the most important variable is how long you have before it turns red, which is information you may not have. This is why simply obeying the law and stopping (if possible and safe to do so) is the only truly logical choice.


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

Spandex said:


> roddy said:
> 
> 
> > its not rocket science,, :roll: it depends on how far you are from the lights , what speed you are doing , other traffic and any other relevant conditions,, :?
> ...


although never actually having timed any trafic light sequences,from what i have seen of traffic lights in england they are much the same as the ones which i experience on a daily basis up here and the amber light is not on for very long, maybe 2 or 3 seconds,,,,, does that help,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, anyway i a off now for 3 weeks in shetland so will not have to deal with any lights for a while,,,, enjoy :wink:


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

roddy said:


> Spandex said:
> 
> 
> > roddy said:
> ...


It's regulated at something like 3 seconds (I forget the exact timing)... My point was more that you can't be 100% accurate in counting 3 seconds (especially when you're concentrating on other things) and you can't always be certain when they changed to amber.

I'm not saying everyone who tries to go through an amber light gets it wrong. I'm just saying you put yourself in a situation where you can't always be 100% certain you're going to make it. Unfortunately, a lot of drivers these days think it's worth the risk, because they think it's ok to go through a red light as long as it's only just turned red and the other cars haven't started moving yet.

Good driving is really just risk management. The Top Gear generation have grown up thinking good driving is about skill, control and handling, but really it's about making good decisions quickly, under pressure, over and over again. To me, the benefits of scraping through the lights on an amber are outweighed by the risks of getting it wrong.


----------



## Gazzer (Jun 12, 2010)

even worse spandy, those that don't have a clear way ahead and still go on the amber and block the sodding junction for the other direction that are now green.
i think Roddy was winging it tbh and your facts proved him wrong........so he had to then turn it into our roads are better than yours neh neh na neh neh :roll:


----------



## John-H (Jul 13, 2005)

People who park across the junction on the yellow box :roll: Not much different than the ones who pull out across your lane to turn right instead of waiting for the traffic to pass, causing you to stop. Selfish. How many people stop in a cueue leaving junctions clear? Not many.


----------



## Demessiah (Jan 27, 2009)

Green means ....... go

Red means ....... stop

Amber means ...... unleash the beat! stomp down on the accelerator and watch as all nearby females panties get moist at the sight of your awesomeness 8)


----------



## neilc (Aug 8, 2011)

Demessiah said:


> Green means ....... go
> 
> Red means ....... stop
> 
> Amber means ...... unleash the beat! stomp down on the accelerator and watch as all nearby females panties get moist at the sight of your awesomeness 8)


In your new Golf TDI :wink:


----------



## Demessiah (Jan 27, 2009)

My tdi rocks, i doubt id be stomping it through any amber lights though. I would prob get T-boned by a rangerover slow ass thing.


----------



## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

Demessiah said:


> Amber means ...... unleash the beat!


Sounds like a 90's school dance group... You in training for the next series of 'Got to Dance'?


----------



## A3DFU (May 7, 2002)

Crikey. 

How difficult can it be to remember traffic lights? Didn't we all learn it at driving school? [smiley=book2.gif]

http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg ... 070561.pdf


----------



## Gazzer (Jun 12, 2010)

Demessiah said:


> Green means ....... go
> 
> Red means ....... stop
> 
> Amber means ...... unleash the beat! stomp down on the accelerator and watch as all nearby females panties get moist at the sight of your awesomeness 8)


One day back and he's off again :lol:


----------



## PaulS (Jun 15, 2002)

CWM3 said:


> You want to see blatant disregard for every known law under the Road Traffic Act, just commute up and down the Commercial Rd in East London 52 weeks a year....peeps don't jump red traffic lights, they just ignore them totally....seems the local populace are untouchable


Traffic lights aren't needed down there for guidance, you can rely on the will of Allah


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

allahu akbar,,,,,,,,, that will do for me.... 8)


----------

