Seen a speed activated traffic light?

[Whippet93]

I wondered how many speed activated traffic lights there are about? I've only seen one on the A75 between Castle Douglas and Dumfries. If you've not seen one, they have a speed detector, a bit like the ones that give a smiley face if you're below the limit, connected to a set of lights a bit further down the road. If you're over 30 mph (on these ones) the lights go red.

 

[Garfields]

There are a few about D&G

 

[Just smiffy]

They’ve had them in France for a few years now…

 

[PaulW2]

They're all over the place in Portugal. Quite a civilised solution I think, rather than to surreptitiously flash you and then ritually disembowel you afterwards.

 

[chaser]

They’ve had them in France for a few years now…

And Portugal

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[jockaneezer]

I wondered how many speed activated traffic lights there are about? I've only seen one on the A75 between Castle Douglas and Dumfries. If you've not seen one, they have a speed detector, a bit like the ones that give a smiley face if you're below the limit, connected to a set of lights a bit further down the road. If you're over 30 mph (on these ones) the lights go red.

If it's the one at Springholme, I may have set it off once

 

[Whippet93]

If it's the one at Springholme, I may have set it off once

me too, was looking at the lights further down thinking there was a crossing, but it had no pedestrian access.

 

[lorger]

They’ve been in for a few years now, they really could do with bypassing the village especially now that they have built quite a few new family homes.

 

[Minxy]

We've seen loads abroad, mainly in France, and sometimes play a game with them.

If we've had an idiot trying to crawl up our rear end we'll approach the lights at the appropriate speed then just a few feet before speed up to trigger them, it takes a split second for them to change by which time were through on green but the muppet behind gets red!

 

[royandsharont]

We have them in Hull. The speeding car sets it to red as they get through leaving us behind to stop and I’m sure one is actually set at below 30mph

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[meanders]

They had linked lights that do the same thing on the A4 west of Slough for 50 years or more. Get through the first and maintain a steady 30 and do you get through them all. Do over 30 and you will get stopped at every set of lights. Not been that way for ten years or so, but it definitely kept speed down. I guess there are about 15 to 20 sets of lights on the sequence.

 

[PaulW2]

They had linked lights that do the same thing on the A4 west of Slough for 50 years or more. Get through the first and maintain a steady 30 and do you get through them all. Do over 30 and you will get stopped at every set of lights. Not been that way for ten years or so, but it definitely kept speed down. I guess there are about 15 to 20 sets of lights on the sequence.

Isn't that just synchronisation? They're set to provide clear passage for vehicles travelling at the speed limit.

 

[peterc10]

Seen them all over France. We call them punishment lights. Annoying when others trigger them and you have to stop as well.

 

[meanders]

Isn't that just synchronisation? They're set to provide clear passage for vehicles travelling at the speed limit.

Correct but has the desired impact of keeping the speed down which is the same as speed controlled lights. I would argue that the former is better environmentally. With the latter folks can drive like loonies, brake down to the speed limit just before the camera and then put foot to floor again.

 

[pappajohn]

Don't need them here.
All the bloody lights are on red when I approach....even at 25mpg
I blame it on having a silver grey car.

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[Peavy]

And Portugal

And over here too

 

[pappajohn]

They had linked lights that do the same thing on the A4 west of Slough for 50 years or more. Get through the first and maintain a steady 30 and do you get through them all. Do over 30 and you will get stopped at every set of lights. Not been that way for ten years or so, but it definitely kept speed down. I guess there are about 15 to 20 sets of lights on the sequence.

The lights on the main trunk roads in Hull used to do that ....hit one green and stick to 30 you only hit green lights

 

[PaulW2]

Correct but has the desired impact of keeping the speed down which is the same as speed controlled lights. I would argue that the former is better environmentally. With the latter folks can drive like loonies, brake down to the speed limit just before the camera and then put foot to floor again.

They’re used differently though. The speed sensitive ones are usually isolated lights, for instance at the entrance to a town or a dangerous stretch.

Synchronised lights are designed to optimise grid flow.

 

[gus-lopez]

I wondered how many speed activated traffic lights there are about? I've only seen one on the A75 between Castle Douglas and Dumfries. If you've not seen one, they have a speed detector, a bit like the ones that give a smiley face if you're below the limit, connected to a set of lights a bit further down the road. If you're over 30 mph (on these ones) the lights go red.

We also have the. No one takes any notice & just drives through them. When you have a police car behind & stop they lay in to the horn & wave at you to drive through

 

[scotzsue]

We have them in Hull. The speeding car sets it to red as they get through leaving us behind to stop and I’m sure one is actually set at below 30mph

Can't say I have noticed them, but the 'speed information' ones are anything but accurate, travelling at 20MPH and one near us is flashing to 30 and slow down, it is annoying.

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[Bill-H]

In the 1970s in Slough, there were several sets of traffic lights all linked together past the Mars factory on a dual carriageway (A40?), timed such that if you travelled through them at 30mph you got green all the way, but exceed 30 and you caught a red one and had to stop. Strangely the section of road was a 40mph limit- but you couldn't do it..
I seem to remember that it was called a 'Green Wave' or somesuch
Not quite speed activated but speed controlling.

 

[bobnick]

Don't need them in the UAE. Speed through traffic lights they arrest you and execute you the following Monday.

 

[Happy Jack]

We have them in Hull. The speeding car sets it to red as they get through leaving us behind to stop and I’m sure one is actually set at below 30mph

Sounds like they are too near the traffic lights, defeats the purpose.

 

[PP Bear]

I like the ones in Germany, where the pre-warning lights start to flash and you know that the green light ahead, will definitely be red by the time you get there. Saves the heavy breaking on the faster roads. Also, the small lights, lower down for the cyclists in the cycle lane. Always did love the German road systems.

 

[Gellyneck]

Don't need them in the UAE. Speed through traffic lights they arrest you and execute you the following Monday.

Surely it must be a sliding scale?

In a 30 limit 70 = Monday
60 = Tuesday
50 = Wednesday
etc
etc
until you hit 20 in a 30 and that's same day execution for impacting the executioners pay!

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[L' Hobo]

They’ve had them in France for a few years now…

A few years, more like 40-50.

There used to be a lot all over the continent, as you were entering a town or village, if you were above the speed limit, the traffic lights would go red and you had to stop.

In my Trucking days, we quickly realised the best plan was to stick to the speed limit and keep moving.

 

[Whippet93]

Correct but has the desired impact of keeping the speed down which is the same as speed controlled lights. I would argue that the former is better environmentally. With the latter folks can drive like loonies, brake down to the speed limit just before the camera and then put foot to floor again.

Not just better environmentally, better financially, as less braking means your brakes last longer, steady speed uses less fuel than accelerate, brake, accelerate brake.

 

[gus-lopez]

Can't say I have noticed them, but the 'speed information' ones are anything but accurate, travelling at 20MPH and one near us is flashing to 30 and slow down, it is annoying.

They do it on purpose and it shouldn't be allowed.they should be 100% accurate.

 

[jerryz]

At least 20 In Brighton and Hove , 7 in Worthing lots in Oxford ,,, NONE in Swindon or Cirencester

 

[TrudeandDall]

They're all over the place in Portugal. Quite a civilised solution I think, rather than to surreptitiously flash you and then ritually disembowel you afterwards.

The system that I saw in Spain is very civilised. There were two sets, the first was on red as you approached the limit area, which only changed to green if your approaching speed was below 30, the second set reconfirmed the 30 limit further into the limit area.
The initial red light slowed us down as we approached the limit and as we drive to the limit, we never had to stop at all. If you are exceeding the limit it was red all the way.
Not sure what the penalty is for jumping a red light and/or breaking the speed limit in Spain.
This traffic light system only affects the drivers breaking the limit, unlike the over sized speed humps found all over France and The NL, which bounce and bump every road user, even if they are not excedding the limit.

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