Driving Force Light Light

Traffic lights , which may also be known as stop lights , stoplight , traffic lamps , stop-and-go lights , robots or semaphore , are signaling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings and other locations to control competing flows of traffic. Traffic lights have been installed in most cities around the world. They assign the right of way to road users by the use of lights in standard colors (Red - Amber - Green), using a universal color code (and a precise sequence, for those who are color blind).

The most common traffic lights consist of a set of three lights: red, yellow, and green. When illuminated, the red light indicates for vehicles facing the light to stop; the amber indicates caution, either because lights are about to turn green or because lights are about to turn red (depending on the region of the world you are in); and the green light to proceed (if it is safe to do so). There are some variations in the use and legislation of traffic lights, depending on the customs of a country and the special needs of a particular intersection. There may, for example, be special lights for pedestrians, bicycles, buses, trams, etc. and there may be special rules or sets of lights for traffic turning in a particular direction. Complex intersections may use any combination of these.

History

On 10 December 1868, the first traffic lights were installed outside the British Houses of Parliament in London, by the railway engineer J. P. Knight. They resembled railway signals of the time, with semaphore arms and red and green gas lamps for night use. The gas lantern was turned with a lever at its base so that the appropriate light faced traffic. Unfortunately, it exploded on 2 January 1869, injuring or killing the policeman who was operating it.

The modern electric traffic light is an American invention. As early as 1912 in Salt Lake City, Utah, policeman Lester Wire invented the first red-green electric traffic lights. On 5 August 1914, the American Traffic Signal Company installed a traffic signal system on the corner of East 105th Street and Euclid Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio. It had two colors, red and green, and a buzzer, based on the design of James Hoge, to provide a warning for color changes. The design by James Hoge allowed police and fire stations to control the signals in case of emergency. The first four-way, three-color traffic light was created by police officer William Potts in Detroit, Michigan in 1920. In 1923, Garrett Morgan patented a traffic signal device. Ashville, Ohio claims to be the location of the oldest working traffic light in the United States, used at an intersection of public roads until 1982 when it was moved to a local museum.

The first interconnected traffic signal system was installed in Salt Lake City in 1917, with six connected intersections controlled simultaneously from a manual switch. Automatic control of interconnected traffic lights was introduced March 1922 in Houston, Texas. The first automatic experimental traffic lights in England were deployed in Wolverhampton in 1927.

The color of the traffic lights representing stop and go might be derived from those used to identify port (red) and starboard (green) in maritime rules governing right of way, where the vessel on the left must stop for the one crossing on the right.

Types of traffic lights

Main article: List of variations in traffic light signalling and operation

In many regions, traffic lights function differently or have different displays depending on available technology, traffic patterns, or other vehicles such as trolleys that also use the intersection. For example, some fixtures feature a flashing green light or more than one arrow lit at one time. An example of a flashing green light found in Canada, to notify left turning drivers that they have the right of way and that the opposing lanes and pedestrians will not be moving.

Three-set lights

The universal standard is for the red to be above the green, and if there is also an amber it is placed in the middle. If the three-set lights are mounted horizontally, the red will typically be to the left of the green. The standards apply whether the country drives on the left or the right, but the placement of the mountings on the road would be mirror images of the other.

Go-stop sequence

In most countries, the sequence is green (go), amber (prepare to stop), and red (stop). In Russia, Serbia, Austria, Israel, and parts of Canada and Mexico, the green light flashes for a few seconds before the amber light comes on. In New Zealand and Canada, amber officially means 'stop (unless it would cause an accident to do so)' but in practice, is treated as 'prepare to stop'.

Stop-go sequence

In most countries the sequence is red (stop), green (go). In some countries, the sequence is red (stop), yellow (prepare to go), green (go). In some places, such as the UK, Germany and Russia, the sequence is red (stop), red and amber (stop, prepare to go), green (go if clear).

Flashing yellow light

In some countries, a flashing yellow light means that intersection must be treated as non-signalized, other road signs such as "yield" or "major road" must be obeyed if present. The single flashing amber signal is used in the UK, Ireland and Australia at Pelican crossings. It is used in Serbia and the United States to mark places where greater attention is needed (dangerous crossings, sharp curves etc.). In Canada, a flashing amber light means "drive with caution" and is frequently combined with a flashing red light (meaning "stop") at four-way intersections. In many South East Asian countries (e.g. Thailand) and European countries, a flashing amber light indicates a driver may proceed cautiously across a junction where signals operate only at busy periods.

Flashing red light

A flashing red is usually treated as a stop sign.

Pedestrian crossing lights

Traffic lights for pedestrians normally have two main lights: a red light that means 'stop' and a green light that means 'go' (or, more correctly, 'proceed with caution'). There is usually a flashing phase (red in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, green in Europe) that means 'complete your crossing'. In most locales in North America, the colors used are a red-orange ("Portland orange") for "stop/wait" and a bluish-white ("lunar") for "go." While the "walk" signal is generally a walking human figure, North American pedestrian signals usually show an upraised hand for "stop," while most other countries display a standing human figure. Some older American signals display the verbal commands "Walk" (lunar white or green) and "Don't Walk" or "Wait" (red-orange). US pedestrian signals are now standardized as being white and orange.

At selected pedestrian crossings in some countries, pedestrian traffic lights include a type of siren, beeper or warbler, which sounds in order to alert visually impaired pedestrians that it is safe to cross (In The Republic of Ireland this is the case at all Pedestrian crossings]]. These may be set to a timer and sound only at daytime to avoid annoying sleeping residents at night, or may be activated by a button. Some other intersections include a white strobe light mounted inside the red light that flashes every few seconds when the light is red. This is mainly used when a new traffic light is installed or where running a red light has proven to be a problem. Some also include tactile warnings, like a vibrating plate, or a rotating cone, to help people with hearing impairment or visual impairment cross the road and street.

Some pedestrian crossing lights are activated only after a pedestrian presses an activating button, while others operate automatically, and others still operate automatically but only at certain times of the day.

In some jurisdictions, at intersections where there are no pedestrian crossing lights in operation, the normal three-set lights also apply to pedestrians crossing the street.

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