Longest time at a stoplight

[roadman65]

According to www.chacha.com is states that one on NJ 23 in West Milford, NJ could have you wait 5 minuets.
http://www.chacha.com/question/what-is-the-longest-stop-light-time-period-in-the-world

I do not know how accurate this one is, but after living in New Jersey for years, I could believe it.  Then again, Florida does not have short wait signals either.

I would say that Orange Blossom Trail at Landstreet Road in Orlando, has the longest wait on a main highway over a side street.  Then, also FL 435 at Major Boulevard is long as well.  Because it is a wide street and a cross walk, with nearby Universal Studios, many pedestrians calling for the crosswalk, it all adds up.  Oh, and add the two phase Major Boulevard timings and you have a long wait. The both are a toss up, but OBT has many of times a two light delay.

For side roads, I must say, 33rd Street at John Young.

The most I ever timed was over a minuet.  Are there any out there that exceed two minuets?  Are there any in your area that you think are too long?

[NE2]

End thread.

[1995hoo]

If I leave my neighborhood at rush hour, I wait three minutes to turn left if I hit the light just as my neighborhood gets the red.

[roadman65]

End thread.

Good photo lol!

[KEK Inc.]

5 minuets.
over a minuet. 
two minuets? 

Why?

[allniter89]

End thread.

I believe that's in Fort Walton Beach, FL at the intersection of Perry Av & US 98 aka Miracle Strip Pkwy. The light at this intersection has since been changed to a full function light.

[jeffandnicole]

If I recall the OP's linked question correctly, it was a story that appeared on NJ.com. However, its not correct. There's actually 2 separate intersections one must go thru, and due to the timing, the two red lights combined total over 5 minutes. Seemed to be a reporter with nothing else to do but stretch some facts.

As for actual cases, I know the red light timing leaving a parking lot onto Rt. 29 in Trenton, NJ can last around 5 minutes.

[Alps]

5 minuets.
over a minuet. 
two minuets? 

Why?

Because what better way to pass the time than a little classical music?

[roadfro]

In traffic timing circles, there is a tradeoff between cycle length and unreasonable delay. I think that tradeoff mark is somewhere around 120-140 seconds (just about 2 minutes) in most cases, but it depends on traffic volumes, progression patterns, etc.

The longest cycle length I am aware of are several 160-second cycles in the Las Vegas area on and around the Las Vegas Strip. FAST has been reluctant to push these cycle lengths any higher in consideration of the delay--most typical cycle lengths in the Las Vegas Valley are either 120 or 140 during most of the day.

[StogieGuy7]

5 minuets.
over a minuet. 
two minuets? 

Why?

Because what better way to pass the time than a little classical music?

LOL!  You beat me to the punchline!!   

[agentsteel53]

End thread.

what's the rationale behind that one?  why not make that one a flashing-yellow/flashing-red?

the south end of CA-27 at CA-1 has about a three minute long green phase for CA-1, so CA-27 is waiting for that long.

[Ian]

The longest red light that I'm aware of has to be the one at the intersection of US 202 and the Brandywine Parkway in northern Delaware. It always ends up taking two to three minutes for the light for Brandywine Parkway to turn green.

[kphoger]

End thread.

No.  You're assuming that people will wait there forever, but I can't imagine there's a person alive who would do so.  There might be a person dead who did so, but that's another story.  However, a person might not notice/read the sign (or understand English) and wait longer than five minutes, so your example might prove true after all.

Back on topic (OK, not really) what about stalled vehicles?  Does that count?

[NE2]

what's the rationale behind that one?  why not make that one a flashing-yellow/flashing-red?

It was a minor street approach to what was otherwise a T intersection of two major roads.

It turns green now: http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1346&dat=20000226&id=ELtNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=dP0DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6273,2389188

[2Co5_14]

http://www.panoramio.com/photo/79351307

Here is a 5 minute red light at the entrance to the Bunker Rd Tunnel in the Marin Headlands just north of San Francisco.  The tunnel is one lane, so traffic must alternate directions.

[M3019C LPS20]

5 minutes in New Jersey, huh? Most traffic signals that I have waited at displayed red indications for at least two minutes.
Although I haven't lived in New Jersey long enough to know if that is actually true.

Most, if not all, of the signalized intersections throughout the state are typically semi-actuated (some are fully-actuated as well). When the cross street at an intersection has no vehicles present in the field of detection, the main drag typically rests on green after it completes its time length. An instant change from green to amber would occur if a vehicle on the cross streets is detected.

I originally grew up in New York City, and electro-mechanical signal controllers were in use. Most, if not all, were pre-timed. With that said, most were timed for 90 seconds. Others 60 seconds. I am not sure how long most of the computerized signal controllers in the city nowadays are timed for, but they could typically be changed (if necessary) by the control center in lower Manhattan, since D.O.T. monitors its computerized signal controllers on a daily basis.

[NE2]

The SR 535 (county maintained)/Hotel Plaza Boulevard light just outside Disney World was recently retimed. I'd estimate about 5 minutes for the complete cycle.

[Mdcastle]

According to an unreliably source (the local newspaper) the light on US 10 in Royalton stays red for cross traffic for 7.5 minutes during the peak "going to the cabin" rush on Friday nights.

[KEK Inc.]

I remembered a light froze in Vancouver, WA.  After about 5 minutes people started going through the red.  Fortunately, the red was frozen for the mainline.

[roadman65]

The other day, I waited three light turns for a signal due to two fire trucks that came exactly when the left turn signal was supposed to give the green arrow.  Coincidentally the two vehicles just entered the intersection at the right time.

Now usually when the fire truck clears the area the light is supposed to resume where it left off, but apparently both the straight through and the side street along with its two protected lefts had two complete phases in between.  If the straight through was two phases it would be certainly understandable as it was interrupted at first when there was the default green on the main road.  It went back to the straight through green, then it turned green for the side road's protected left turn, then the side road green, and skipped the left turn signal on my side.  Then just near the end of the next straight through cycle the second fire truck entered the intersection and the same thing happened all over again.

[roadfro]

^ Part of the fun with emergency vehicles going through traffic signals is "preemption". That is, if an emergency vehicle activates a preemption, the signal will be interrupted with whatever direction the emergency vehicle needs a green. The signal doesn't necessarily go back to where it left off, but may continue at whatever point that phase would be in the normal cycle. It also, depending on settings in the traffic controller, alters each subsequent cycle (either shortening or lengthening) until the phases can get back to normal duration and offset synchronization with the master clock. Having two simultaneous preemptions can wreak havoc on signal operations.

[getemngo]

If I recall the OP's linked question correctly, it was a story that appeared on NJ.com. However, its not correct. There's actually 2 separate intersections one must go thru, and due to the timing, the two red lights combined total over 5 minutes. Seemed to be a reporter with nothing else to do but stretch some facts.

It's the intersection of NJ 23 and Clinton Road, and at least one NJ.com article gets it right and mentions you go through one 2½ minute signal, followed by a second one that's timed to be red when the first one is green.

Fun fact: Clinton Road is supposedly haunted or something.

[Alps]

If I recall the OP's linked question correctly, it was a story that appeared on NJ.com. However, its not correct. There's actually 2 separate intersections one must go thru, and due to the timing, the two red lights combined total over 5 minutes. Seemed to be a reporter with nothing else to do but stretch some facts.

It's the intersection of NJ 23 and Clinton Road, and at least one NJ.com article gets it right and mentions you go through one 2½ minute signal, followed by a second one that's timed to be red when the first one is green.

Fun fact: Clinton Road is supposedly haunted or something.

I've been down Clinton Rd., and there's some pretty cool shit there - random graffiti, fog that creeps across the road in rivulets - but no demons.

[cpzilliacus]

According to an unreliably source (the local newspaper) the light on US 10 in Royalton stays red for cross traffic for 7.5 minutes during the peak "going to the cabin" rush on Friday nights.

The arterial part of U.S. 50 on the Eastern Shore of Maryland (from Ocean City to Salisbury; and from Salisbury to Queenstown) has numerous signalized intersections where the signals are programed to provide for very long green intervals during the summer months of "goin' down the ocean," which means that the cross streets have very long reds.

[tradephoric]

One reason why an intersection might have a long cycle is due to pedestrian safety minimums.   Assume based on the traffic volumes a vehicle phase requires 15% of the cycle time to run efficiently.  Now assume a long pedestrian crossing runs during that vehicle phase with 50 second pedestrian intervals (which would be equivalent to a 150 ft long crossing).   To maintain the 15% vehicle phase, the cycle would need to run 330 seconds (50/330 = 15%).     

It doesn't take a study (but I'm sure one has been done) to realize that the longer a pedestrian is asked to wait, the more likely they are to cross during the "don't walk" .  The cycle times are being pushed up higher in order to fit the pedestrian intervals, intervals which are trending higher with each MUTCD release.    It's a noble goal to provide pedestrians more time to cross the street, but it may have some dangerous unintended consequences in certain scenarios.