Comments on: Abandon All Hope…

By: Fritz

Fritz — Thu, 31 May 2007 14:46:58 +0000

Tuning loop detectors to detect bikes (and motorcycles) isn’t always so simple. If they’re sensitive enough to detect bicycles, many times they’re also sensitive enough detect a truck traveling in the opposite lane and other false detection scenarios.

By: Eric

Eric — Thu, 31 May 2007 14:03:09 +0000

Here is some info I have gathered on controlling traffic signals with your bike.

http://kcbike.info/commuting/trafficsignals/

Most signals with loop or video detection can be tuned to detect bikes, and there are ways you can trip signals that are out of tune.

By: John

John — Wed, 30 May 2007 16:55:01 +0000

In NYC, I have “run” red lights right in front of traffic officers. In fact, I do it all the time. As long as I can see that there is absolutely no traffic coming in either direction, I’ll take the light. NYC traffic cops don’t seem to mind. Of course, that’s NYC, where the city treating cycling as a low priority has made it a complete mess.

However, I always do stop before the crosswalk, and if it is being used by any pedestrians I’ll wait.

Sometimes logic outweighs technicality. The idea of someone letting minutes go by at a completely car-less intersection just because of a technicality is borderline absurd.

By: Fritz

Fritz — Wed, 30 May 2007 05:00:14 +0000

I found out that some states allow "malfunctioning" traffic signals as an "affirmative defense" for running red lights. In other words, it's an automatic get-out-of-jail-free card if you're ticketed while running the light. According to this website, this law is on the books in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Georgia, Tennessee, and Idaho. So it looks like the practice of considering a light defective may not be entirely legal in other states. I'll still run the lights, though, if the light is defective.

By: Fritz

Fritz — Wed, 30 May 2007 04:46:12 +0000

Many bicycle friendly cities mark the spot where cyclists can best trigger the light. In my old hometown of Longmont, Colorado, all new traffic signals must be optical sensors that can detect bikes, and the city is also replacing all older loop detectors with the optical sensors.

By: JiMCi

JiMCi — Wed, 30 May 2007 03:00:22 +0000

Two out of many options:
- On your top picture, there’s a nice pole, perfect to fit a button wired to the loop. Stop at red, push the button and get your green light.
- Can’t remember exactly the city, I believe it’s Seattle… There have painted marks on the pavement showing cyclists exactly where to stop to trigger bike specific sensors that control traffic lights at bike lane crossings.

By: Tommy Williams

Tommy Williams — Wed, 30 May 2007 02:43:53 +0000

There are these high-strength magnets designed for motorcycles that will supposedly trip the sensors reliably. I haven’t tried them, but I have heard of people who have strapped them under their bottom bracket and have good results. One example here: http://www.casporttouring.com/store/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=13000&Category_Code=Specials

Where I live in Bellevue, Washington, the city has marked the most-sensitive spots with white painted X’s in the road so that you place your front wheel there to trigger the light. I ride a steel-framed bike and I have no problem triggering any of the lights that I encounter in Bellevue or Redmond. I don’t even have to bother with the white X’s, either–one of the nice benefits of a big steel bike.

By: Dan

Dan — Wed, 30 May 2007 02:04:35 +0000

I give it one and a half full cycles, and then I go when it is clear. I guess I’ve reached the point in my life when I don’t really care about the ticket, and I could have some fun fighting it in court.

By: Richard

Richard — Wed, 30 May 2007 00:08:51 +0000

I agree with Fritz. Most traffic codes specifically say that you are allowed to “run” a non working light. The details of how and when you can do that may be variable. In Seattle, you are required to wait a full light cycle, if you are not given your rightful turn by then, then you may proceed through the intersection. I suspect there is a caveat that you have to yield to other vehicles as well.

That said, I’ve never had a problem tripping a light. But, I don’t ride a cabon bike. Many intersections in Seattle have a white “T” that marks where the hub of your front wheel should be. If there is no “T” then I line up the front and rear hubs over the loop. This may require skewing your bike depending on the size of the loop.

By: Fritz

Fritz — Tue, 29 May 2007 23:41:18 +0000

1. Police officers are *not* lawyers.

2. You may “run” defective traffic lights.

3. The police might ticket you regardless if the law. You’d have to fight the ticket in court.

4. Local judges are often jerks, so you might not prevail in fighting the ticket even if the law is on your side.

5. I’m not a lawyer, either. This advice is worth exactly what you pay for it.

See what John Allen writes in his book “Street Smarts” under Tough Situations: Always stop and wait for red lights. You not only ensure your safety, but you also increase respect for cyclists as law-abiding road users.

But some traffic lights don’t turn green until they receive a signal from a metal detector buried in the pavement. Some of these detectors do not respond to bicycles.

You can recognize the detector by a square or octagonal pattern of thin lines in the pavement, where slots were cut for the detecting wires. The detector is most sensitive if you ride along one of the wires. (Sometimes, the slots for the wires are not visible, as the street has been repaved since they were installed).

If your bicycle doesn’t trip the detector, you have to wait for a car to do it, or else you have to go through the red light. Going through the red isn’t against the law, because the light is defective. If you ever have a crash or get a traffic ticket because a traffic light won’t turn green, it’s the fault of whoever installed the detector.

Detectors that work for bicycles are available at little or no additional cost. Design guidelines exist for these detectors. If you want to promote better conditions for bicycling, alert your government officials about road conditions of any type that are unsafe for bicycling. Let them know that they are responsible to make the roadways as safe as possible for all types of vehicles, and that accommodation of bicycles is important to you. Getting involved at the local level can be very effective.