Reply to: Stopping at Traffic Lights

[TiroFijo]

WHY, do some people stop at least a car's length from the line at traffic lights, I just don't get it?

Something else I don't get even more, is why do people not use pay @ the pump! No they wanna go inside and stand in the f ucking queue meanwhile keeping me waiting to us the pump! If your going to bye something inside then ok but most of them don't.

USE PAY @ THE PUMP FFS!!!

[EternalOptimist]

In my experience, those that do stop short of the line, are just setting off when they are a dot in my rear view mirror.

All I can say, is thank fck you are in front of me and not behind me. At least I can keep my eye on you

[thunderlizard]

I hope you realise that in the course of this debate, you've wasted the sum total of all the snippets of time you've saved with your precision traffic lights ballet.

[Freamon]

Are you sure about that part? If you go through a light on amber changing green->amber->red then OK, but not the other way around shirley?

Hmm, I think you're right:

175

You MUST stop behind the white ‘Stop’ line across your side of the road unless the light is green. If the amber light appears you may go on only if you have already crossed the stop line or are so close to it that to stop might cause a collision.

[Laws RTA 1988 sect 36 & TSRGD regs 10 & 36]
176

You MUST NOT move forward over the white line when the red light is showing. Only go forward when the traffic lights are green if there is room for you to clear the junction safely or you are taking up a position to turn right. If the traffic lights are not working, treat the situation as you would an unmarked junction and proceed with great care.

[Laws RTA 1988 sect 36 & TSRGD regs 10 & 36]

Since the transition from red to green never involves amber being shown without red (i.e. red and amber are shown together), you cannot technically move over the white line until the light is green.

[d000hg]

Same. In fact, I usually watch the lights on the opposite phase to see when they go amber, and set off at that point. By the time I hit the line I'm doing 20mph and the lights for the phase I'm in are just turning amber, so I can cross the line legally.

Are you sure about that part? If you go through a light on amber changing green->amber->red then OK, but not the other way around shirley?

[Waldorf]

Same. In fact, I usually watch the lights on the opposite phase to see when they go amber, and set off at that point. By the time I hit the line I'm doing 20mph and the lights for the phase I'm in are just turning amber, so I can cross the line legally.

In my experience, those that do stop short of the line, are just setting off when they are a dot in my rear view mirror.

[Freamon]

If I need to get a quick start, I will leave a space so that I can start rolling at amber and cross the line on green.

Same. In fact, I usually watch the lights on the opposite phase to see when they go amber, and set off at that point. By the time I hit the line I'm doing 20mph and the lights for the phase I'm in are just turning amber, so I can cross the line legally.

[DimPrawn]

It all boils down to over population of the Uk (heading for 100m soon, when denmark has 9m people), dumbing down of drivers tests and cheap petrol.

I'm hoping Osbourne slaps that 5p a litre fuel duty on asap.

Infact, for AGW reasons, make it 50p increase per litre.

[Paddy]

If I need to get a quick start, I will leave a space so that I can start rolling at amber and cross the line on green.

[wobbegong]

WHY, do some people stop at least a car's length from the line at traffic lights, I just don't get it?

There's a set of lights near my house where you have to stop 6' before the line because there is no repeater set of lights opposite, and if you are on the line (thanks to the recessed lenses/sun shields) you can't see the lights change, but the guy in the white van behind you can, and invariably blares his horn the nanosecond they change.

Next time you see it happen, check for the repeater set opposite.

[d000hg]

If everybody did a track day as part of the driving test my morning commute could be at least 5 minutes quicker.

I think a more accurate statement is "either 5 minutes faster, or 60min slower due to the frequent accidents"

[Sysman]

What about the people that take roundabouts like a chicane and so driving straight across the lane that a faster car is using to overtake them?

I had that once. A young bird was doing that at every single roundabout on the way to work and I couldn't manage to pass them for several miles. Straight across two and three lane roundabouts without any regard for the road markings.

I eventually managed to pass her, then duh!, stopped to buy a sandwich, and there she was doing the same at the next roundabout.

I pulled over and ate my sandwich at that point.

[Sysman]

What about people who stop at clear roundabouts instead of taking it like a smooth fast chicane.

If everybody did a track day as part of the driving test my morning commute could be at least 5 minutes quicker.

Oh you've hit a sore spot there. I was once cycling down a steep hill to a perfectly empty roundabout where I could take the first left, chicane like.

Idiot driver in front of me stopped at the dotted line, then looked to see if any traffic was coming.

I still don't know how I managed to stop in time, for I was doing a great rate of knots.

Hmm. I've just remembered the roundabouts in Leeds. The planners' brief was obviously to slow you down, because they put huge grassed mounds in the middle so that you couldn't see what traffic was coming. You really needed to burn rubber on entering them in case something appeared from around the bend all of a sudden, especially if you were headed for the inside lane. One could almost forgive the roundabout lunacy of Swindon after that experience, for at least you could see over them.

[VectraMan]

Only when its clear, I prefer the racing line as it saves fuel and polar bears.

I deliberately take the long way round and stay in lane because it's good practice for trackdays. Half the time this nearly results in an accident because nobody is expecting you to stay in lane.

[thunderlizard]

Does it matter? what's wrong with gaps? except that , at an average speed of 30 mph, each 3m gap you need to make up will delay your journey by 0.2s