Unfriendly traffic lights are unfriendly

**Floppy disk** · 25th October 2013, 07:49

I just hate those traffic lights that are not changing periodically, yet do not respond to a heavy bike with a heavy rider on them. There are few around and I always end up praying a car might come soon enough. Yesterday I had to roll forward and ask the car behind me to advance so that the weight detectors work. But last week I was in the middle of the night, no car around, and I waited and waited, and they weighed my options: Should I go off the bike walk to the pedestrians light and push it leaving the bike unattended with a running engine? Or shall I just run through the traffic light? What would/did you do n such situation?

**Trade_nancy** · 25th October 2013, 08:05

I wondered if there is such a thing as a "weight detector"...are you certain? I know it's what we've been told...but I thought they'd all be synchronised on a computer nowadays??
Have a similar issue when commuting early - 4:30am through town...same set of lights every damned day...in the car or on the bike - f lights sits on red for ages. Next day - it changes at 20 sec intervals...and is fine for a week..then.. it's back to several minutes again. I go through after 2 mins or so if there's no sign of police. I went thru a red on my bike back in the 70's when I figured the lights were stuck and the car behind started gentle tooting. Turned out there was a copper behind the car. Pulled me over and told me off,.. no ticket though. Said - you have to stay and wait...forever.

**Floppy disk** · 25th October 2013, 08:17

Originally Posted by Trade_nancy

I wondered if there is such a thing as a "weight detector"...are you certain? I know it's what we've been told...but I thought they'd all be synchronised on a computer nowadays??

100% sure. The weight detectors are working, but only when the computer is using them. In many places, they put a specific pattern(s) for the lights to change during the day to accommodate traffic flow, and switch to weight detectors by night. Technically, you can even have both at the same time (i.e. shortcut the pattern if no car is coming through the green light).

I was wondering if anyone have asked the police about this one.

**Ulsterkiwi** · 25th October 2013, 08:31

Encounter that problem quite often. Travel to work at about 5.30am. One set of lights in particular can sit on red for ages with noone and I mean NOONE in sight for maybe a km of road.
Apparently sometimes the sensor is not weight activated but magnetic, maybe you need to work on your magnetism

I guess if you can see clearly you take the chance and go. If the boys in blue see you at it you are at their mercy because its clearly not legal. Certainly if I were to pull that one I wouldnt argue if I got ticketed, its a calculated risk. Having said that I still find the kiwi fascination with running red lights interesting!!!!

**iYRe** · 25th October 2013, 08:46

There is a sensor, and they are meant to be able to detect a bicycle, let alone a motorbike. You can report them to the council (like the auckland council), and they come out with in a few weeks and adjust them. So far only 1 out of 5 I have reported dont work properly now.

**Mom** · 25th October 2013, 08:46

Report any lights that wont pick you up to the council, they can adjust the sensitivity of the sensors. Its like anything, if they dont know there is a problem, they cant fix it for you.

**iYRe** · 25th October 2013, 08:50

Originally Posted by mom

report any lights that wont pick you up to the council, they can adjust the sensitivity of the sensors. Its like anything, if they dont know there is a problem, they cant fix it for you.

^^^^^^^^^^^^---

**Ruahine** · 25th October 2013, 09:32

Originally Posted by iYRe

There is a sensor, and they are meant to be able to detect a bicycle, let alone a motorbike. You can report them to the council (like the auckland council), and they come out with in a few weeks and adjust them. So far only 1 out of 5 I have reported dont work properly now.

Sometimes you can see the break in the tarmac where the sensors are. I find putting the stand down on this break/join can help get the lights to detect you.

**n3Xro** · 25th October 2013, 09:40

Run into this often round the tron. Particularly the turning lanes that are controlled. Even in the middle of the day I have been stuck through 2-3 light sequences waiting for someone in a car to pull into the lane to trigger it a couple of times I've had to roll forward and wave them on as well.
Now know where most of the tricky ones are so if I'm on my own now I use them for a little bit of emergency braking practice when its dry, the extra force on the front tyre seems to be enough to trigger it.

**swbarnett** · 25th October 2013, 09:41

Originally Posted by Trade_nancy

- you have to stay and wait...forever.

As I understand it you're allowed to go through a red carefully if they are malfunctioning. It seems obvious to me that if they won't change for you they are indeed malfunctioning. I'd be challenging any ticket under such circumstances. I'd love to hear from anyone that has already done so.

**G4L4XY** · 25th October 2013, 15:32

I was riding with a mate in Auckland City late one night. The light was red and we stopped and the pedestrian light instructed dem peds to start walking. Next thing my mate jumps off his bike and pushes it through the lights amoungst the pedestrians!!! I sat there waiting like a good boy.

He never did get any tickets in the mail haha

..And yes I've had to roll forward to let a car initiate the whatever mechanism it is that triggers the lights.

**rphenix** · 25th October 2013, 16:09

Originally Posted by Ulsterkiwi

Encounter that problem quite often. Travel to work at about 5.30am. One set of lights in particular can sit on red for ages with noone and I mean NOONE in sight for maybe a km of road.
Apparently sometimes the sensor is not weight activated but magnetic, maybe you need to work on your magnetism

I guess if you can see clearly you take the chance and go. If the boys in blue see you at it you are at their mercy because its clearly not legal. Certainly if I were to pull that one I wouldnt argue if I got ticketed, its a calculated risk. Having said that I still find the kiwi fascination with running red lights interesting!!!!

Theres one that I use if no car comes along and its late the light never changes simple as that. I've had pedestrians press the button and you hope the lights will cycle through after the ped has crossed but nope goes straight back to the other traffic again so you have the option of running the light or waiting forever for a car to turn up.

**Mom** · 25th October 2013, 16:13

Originally Posted by swbarnett

As I understand it you're allowed to go through a red carefully if they are malfunctioning. It seems obvious to me that if they won't change for you they are indeed malfunctioning. I'd be challenging any ticket under such circumstances. I'd love to hear from anyone that has already done so.

I remember doing that out at East Tamaki, intersection with Te Rakau Drive. Was absolutely shitting myself running a red, but it was not going to change for me. IIRC I was test riding some 2 smoker beast of a thing that did not know how to keep its front wheel on the ground, was a bit like riding a bucking horse as I had no feel of the clutch/gas combination to ease it around the place. So there I was lifting the front wheel while running a red light...

No plod around so all good.