Driver risks a rear-ender and a ticket to "help" me

[Splinter]

I have a love/hate relationship with traffic lights, but I do like the ones with timers which you can see from way back. I think it's an excellent safety feature actually, helping us when we approach the lights.

 

[Hanta Yo]

And therein lies the problem AND the advantage of the written word, Gone in 60! I totally and completely misunderstood your original message (I thought my action was what would annoy you), BUT I hwas able to ask for and receive clarification. Beautiful! Thank you.

 

[Gone in 60]

I have a love/hate relationship with traffic lights, but I do like the ones with timers which you can see from way back. I think it's an excellent safety feature actually, helping us when we approach the lights.

One of the reasons I bought my 650 was traffic lights... This bike replaced a CB300R in my fleet that was lots of fun, but one of its drawbacks was being too light to trigger most of the traffic lights in my area. The 650 is heavy enough to trigger everything except for one of the gates leading out of my condo complex, but at least I can hit a remote and open it.

Can't change a traffic light with a remote. Unless you're an ambulance or a space ship.

 

[Gone in 60]

And therein lies the problem AND the advantage of the written word, Gone in 60! I totally and completely misunderstood your original message (I thought my action was what would annoy you), BUT I hwas able to ask for and receive clarification. Beautiful! Thank you.

No worries!

 

[Splinter]

One of the reasons I bought my 650 was traffic lights... This bike replaced a CB300R in my fleet that was lots of fun, but one of its drawbacks was being too light to trigger most of the traffic lights in my area. The 650 is heavy enough to trigger everything except for one of the gates leading out of my condo complex, but at least I can hit a remote and open it.

Can't change a traffic light with a remote. Unless you're an ambulance or a space ship.

What do you mean by 'trigger the lights'?

 

[Bluestrom13]

What do you mean by 'trigger the lights'?

Turns out we have similar in UK - "live and Learn"

TOTW: Make those automatic traffic lights change – The Blog Formerly Known as McWiki

themcdonalds.net

 

[Splinter]

Turns out we have similar in UK - "live and Learn"

TOTW: Make those automatic traffic lights change – The Blog Formerly Known as McWiki

themcdonalds.net

I know I'm going off topic, but we don't have sensors like that in Argentina. All the lights are controlled by an ancient Pentium III in a basement somewhere
The timers are a big LED display which counts down to green. Most of us zoom away on 1.

 

[Gone in 60]

Our traffic lights (and the gates to my complex) are triggered by some kind of elctrical hoobajoob that detects the presence of a vehicle sitting at the intersection.
Traffic generally flows until a car stops at another part of the intersection, which will cause the light for that car to eventually change to green.

Larger motorcycles produce enough electric "field" (hoobajoob) to trigger the sensors. My little 300cc Honda did not for many of them, putting me in a situation where I had to wait until the intersection was clear enough to squirt through on a red light. Scores of articles have been written on how to get a motorcycle to trigger these sensors, from where to place the bike over the sensor, putting the sidestand down, etc.

 

[Splinter]

Intelligent traffic lights are the way to go. How many times have we been sitting at never ending red lights when there's nothing coming?
Having said that, here in Buenos Aires most of the lights turn flashing amber after a certain time of night, depending on the area, because it's considered unsafe to sit at lights at night.
If I ride at night, which isn't often, I go straight through red lights as well if the area is dodgy. It's accepted practice.

 

[Hanta Yo]

I always thought the light triggering mechanism was under the asphalt and worked by sensing the weight of the vehicle sitting on top of it... which is why motorcycles (being much lighter than even very small cars) DON'T trigger them. In Canada, there is always what looks to be an oblong line shape on the tarmac approaching traffic lights and a round line shape in the first car position. I have experienced it when some drivers hang back from the circle one and fail to trigger the light because of that. I see now that your explanation would end up having the same result. Interesting! I will experiment with my Interceptor when I get the chance and see what results I get. Live and learn. And hey... it's only off topic if nobody else is interested in where you are leading the conversation, Splinter. I find you not guilty.

 

[Andy131]

I may be wrong but I think that the loops in the road are inductive, they create a magnetic field that is changed by objects over the top. The best thing to trigger it are metal, so a large mass of a car is perfect, a heavy bike will work better than a lightweight one made from plastic.

Idiots who hang back a cars length or so away from the lights (why?) fail to trigger the lights and keep the rest of us waiting - obviously a pet hate.

 

[Woodstock]

Puttbutt and I had to motion the car behind, which admirably was giving us lots of room, to come forward to trigger the green light for a one lane road under a railway bridge. The guy took some time to work it out. But once he or she closed, the light went green for us. We had been sitting for an inordinately long time.