Sitting at stop lights isn't my favorite thing to do.?ÿ ?ÿIt rates right up there with root canals, prostate exams and sticking a needle in my eye.?ÿ But alas I'm forced to endure it with all the other mindless mechanical-cattle on the road with me.
I picked up a habit years ago of timing lights and counting the cars that can make it through any given cycle at all my "favorite" lights.?ÿ I think it stemmed from my days working for consultants; sitting in a vehicle all day near the intersection and counting traffic with a hand-held clicker.?ÿ It can get a little hairy to keep track of E-W bound, N-S bound, left turners and the time of day.?ÿ If we were lucky the boss would send two or three out to do it.?ÿ At least you had someone to talk with.
And while sitting at a light I still count the seconds on the lights and the number of cars that can make it through a cycle.?ÿ I've done it for almost 40 years.?ÿ But about two or three years ago I started noticing that things weren't moving as fast.?ÿ I first noticed my old "rule of thumb" of 1 second per car was lagging behind.?ÿ Simply put: if you're the seventh car back in a line of cars stopped for the light it will probably take you seven seconds to enter the intersection once the light is green.?ÿ It has slowed to where it seems as though it was approaching 2 seconds per car, but not quite.?ÿ It doesn't take a rocket surgeon to understand that the fewer cars that make it through a light, the average traffic for any given time interval will be less.?ÿ Hence, traffic backs up. Another thing I've noticed is folks don't get as close to the car in front of them as they use to.?ÿ I only see five cars where seven or eight use to fit.?ÿ?ÿ
Being an old curmudgeon I initially through it was all these distracted drivers texting and chatting that was causing the phenomenon.?ÿ I recently realized some vehicles' engines actually turn off at a stop and some (short) amount of time is required to start the vehicle again.?ÿ I also recently learned there is safety features on some cars that either warn a driver of brake for the driver when getting too close to something blocking the vehicle...like the car in front of them at an intersection.
Now I'm really wondering now if all the FHWA (and whomever else provides statistics) design criteria takes any of this into consideration.?ÿ?ÿ
When it's time, I'm ready to go when the light turns green.?ÿ I really don't have the time for all the social-media reading, gluten-intolerant and tree hugging grad students down here in Norman to sit and wonder if they really want to proceed through the intersection.?ÿ
OK. Rant off.?ÿ I feel better...and stay off my lawn...?ÿ 😉
One of the most stressful things in my life is sitting at a red light when there is no other traffic in any direction. Sometimes I choose to relieve that stress, which only makes the wife freak out. And that is a different kind of stress.
The second most stressful scenario is being at the back of a line of cars at a red, seeing the light turn green, and then waiting FOREVER for the car in front of me to move. Maybe the light turns red again before it does. ARRRRRGH!
Around here, it's best to wait a 2-count after the light turns green before you enter an intersection to give the red-light-runners time to clear.
Sacramento County believes that a north-south thoroughfare should have at least a twenty minute green (I exaggerate but not by much) then let 5 or 6 cars through east-west, can be very aggravating especially when the person in front of you is posting on Facebook instead of proceeding on green, of course they always make it leaving a few people behind steaming at the red. A traffic engineer told me we train people to run red lights because no one wants to be left at the bottom of the interminable cycle. He obviously disagreed with Sacramento County's signal programming.
What is this red light thing of which you speak? ?ÿNo such critter within 15 miles of my house.
sitting in a vehicle all day near the intersection and counting traffic with a hand-held clicker.?ÿ
Did?ÿ Yugo's get counted?
sitting in a vehicle all day near the intersection and counting traffic with a hand-held clicker.?ÿ
Did?ÿ Yugo's get counted?
We only counted Yugos if they made it ALL the way through the intersection.
Actually we "estimated" them all.?ÿ ?ÿPick a direction of travel and count how many cars "usually" stack up at a red.?ÿ It was probably somewhere between 5 and 10 depending on time of day.?ÿ When the intersection moves on the green start clicking on the through traffic (they're harder to count) and then add to your original stack count.?ÿ I doubt if the error was even as high as 3%.?ÿ And some intersections had 5K or even 10K?ÿ ADT.?ÿ You got good at 'clicking'.
Of course that before Bill Gates, and two guys named Paul developed a digital data retrieval system for pneumatic mechanical traffic counters to generate traffic reports.?ÿ That was the beginning of the end for traffic-counting surveyors.?ÿ I can't say I miss it at all.?ÿ Both Bill Gates and I moved on to bigger and better things.
OK. Rant off.?ÿ I feel better...and stay off my lawn...?ÿ
No, you're doing fine. In fact I believe you captured what was (and god let me get this right) a Texas A&M study on traffic.
The gist of the report indicated that following too close was a traffic impediment, it follows; when there wasn't enough time to slow, the brake lights came on causing a chain reaction almost instantly.?ÿ When the slow-down-stop finally cleared it took considerably longer for drivers to recognize and react.
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I live here in Houston, and a lot of our streets and thoroughfares have the lights timed. This really does work if you keep your head in the game, drive kinda' friendly,?ÿ and do the recommended speed limit.
recommended speed limit.
That used to be a self-contradictory phrase, but around here it seems people do treat the sign as only recommendation which is usually not heeded.?ÿ If you drive 5 over you still get passed by more cars than you pass yourself.
'If you drive 5 over you still get passed by more cars than you pass yourself.'
Sure, there's always a few who are 'A lot smarter' and drive ten to fifteen over.
They're usually up ahead about five hundred yards, sitting at the next red light.
People driving slower than me are idiots, those driving faster than me are maniacs.
In FL. they they just use a body count at intersections to determine if a traffic signal is needed.?ÿ
@flga-pls-2-2
Kansas uses the same research.?ÿ There is a grant program available to counties called High Risk Rural Roads Grant.?ÿ People almost definitely need to die along that route or intersection or railroad crossing in order to possibly get selected for a grant.?ÿ Obviously dangerous is not good enough.?ÿ Verifiably dangerous is essential.
So you put a new reason for high traffic to move along a rural road, say build a new high school or manufacturing plant.?ÿ Add pre-existing driving hazards.?ÿ Nope, not good enough to get in the running for a grant.?ÿ Preferably, several people must die.?ÿ Getting hospitalized sort of helps but still isn't good enough.
BTW, about the time a new high school was placed on a county road close to a railroad crossing the railroad agreed to install signal lights and arms at that crossing despite no history of accidents when it was only used by local farmers.?ÿ Within a month of the installation of the new safety lights and arms a couple of out-of-county alcoholics decided to drive around the arms one night.?ÿ They both died a couple of seconds later.?ÿ You can't fix stupid.
