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Horizontal Traffic Lights

Started by Roadsguy, October 26, 2012, 07:21:47 PM

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DaBigE

Quote from: Scott5114 on November 21, 2012, 06:01:26 AM
Could be that since the horizontal-mount bracket hardware is less frequently used, it is more expensive, I guess.

Usually, you can use the same mounting hardware for both. If you use the trombone arms that were a WisDOT standard for so many years/decades, then installing them vertically will cost more, as the mounting hardware was built-in for the horizontal configuration. A bracket would have to be added to mount them vertically on a trombone arm.

Quote from: Milepost61 on November 20, 2012, 11:11:18 PM
From what I've seen it's state preference. Texas, New Mexico, Wisconsin and Nebraska as far as I know are the only states to use them on a widespread basis.

Not on newer installations: End of the Horizontal Light [WI]
"We gotta find this road, it's like Bob's road!" - Rabbit, Twister


Alps

Quote from: Quillz on November 20, 2012, 10:40:07 PM
For the record, I'm talking about these:


I'd like to talk about that, too. Where is that?

Ah, Arcanum, Ohio. Thanks, Google image search!

roadman65

Quote from: roadfro on November 21, 2012, 04:33:09 AM
There is no reason why horizontally-mounted traffic signals would be more difficult to maintain or more expensive. For the most part, the use comes down to height/clearance limitations (as in mounting under a bridge) or state preference.

Mast arms versus span wire doesn't really have much to do with this topic...
Actually I was trying to point out that maybe what Quillz heard about horizontal vs. vertical in cost was due to the cost about mast arm vs. span wire.  Not that I was changing the subject or trying to change it.

However, someone else made the point about the trombone mast arms are more expensive to purchase as it requires more parts.  That could be what he heard and it does make sense to me.
Every day is a winding road, you just got to get used to it.

Sheryl Crowe

achilles765

These are what we have all over Houston...I kinda like them.  I am so used to seeing them everyday that I sometimes forget that that isn't what all signals are like.
I love freeways and roads in any state but Texas will always be first in my heart

roadman65

Quote from: achilles765 on November 23, 2012, 01:50:07 PM
These are what we have all over Houston...I kinda like them.  I am so used to seeing them everyday that I sometimes forget that that isn't what all signals are like.
Just go south to Galveston.  They seem to have the standard signals along Broadway Avenue.
Every day is a winding road, you just got to get used to it.

Sheryl Crowe

achilles765

Quote from: roadman65 on December 02, 2012, 07:23:22 PM
Quote from: achilles765 on November 23, 2012, 01:50:07 PM
These are what we have all over Houston...I kinda like them.  I am so used to seeing them everyday that I sometimes forget that that isn't what all signals are like.
Just go south to Galveston.  They seem to have the standard signals along Broadway Avenue.

Case in point; I was just in Galveston in late September and didn't even take notice.
I love freeways and roads in any state but Texas will always be first in my heart

jeffandnicole

Driving on LBI (Long Beach Island, NJ) yesterday, there are several towns that one goes thru on the main roadway (Long Beach Blvd / Bay Ave) while traveling thru the barrier island.  I headed South, from NJ 72 towards Holgate. 
It appears that a few of the towns, for whatever reason, are using horizontal traffic lights.  It's been about 2 years since I drove thru LBI and this is the first time I recall seeing them.  In all cases, these horizontal lights are on a span wire diagonally across the roadway.   In the other towns, the traffic lights are hung vertically on a span wire, or on a typical NJ mast arm. LBI is also the only area in NJ that uses span wires for permanent traffic lights.
Along this stretch of roadway, the majority of the lights aren't in operation, which is fairly typical during the low season on LBI, and stop signs are used on the side roads for traffic control.  However, what was unusual was the number of traffic lights with no power whatsoever, which most likely can be attributed to Hurricane Sandy.  The unwritten law on LBI is that Long Beach Blvd/Bay Ave is the thru street, and traffic doesn't need to stop at these non-operative lights (or it may be a written law, for all I know).
In this stretch of roadway, 2 lights were in full operation - at NJ 72 and Bay Ave, and one intersection slightly to the south. In many cases, the lights were on flash.  In an unusual number of cases, the lights were out completely, and in 3 cases, one of the traffic lights spanning was completely missing!

Alps

Quote from: jeffandnicole on December 11, 2012, 03:24:29 PM
Driving on LBI (Long Beach Island, NJ) yesterday, there are several towns that one goes thru on the main roadway (Long Beach Blvd / Bay Ave) while traveling thru the barrier island.  I headed South, from NJ 72 towards Holgate. 
It appears that a few of the towns, for whatever reason, are using horizontal traffic lights.  It's been about 2 years since I drove thru LBI and this is the first time I recall seeing them.  In all cases, these horizontal lights are on a span wire diagonally across the roadway.   In the other towns, the traffic lights are hung vertically on a span wire, or on a typical NJ mast arm. LBI is also the only area in NJ that uses span wires for permanent traffic lights.
Along this stretch of roadway, the majority of the lights aren't in operation, which is fairly typical during the low season on LBI, and stop signs are used on the side roads for traffic control.  However, what was unusual was the number of traffic lights with no power whatsoever, which most likely can be attributed to Hurricane Sandy.  The unwritten law on LBI is that Long Beach Blvd/Bay Ave is the thru street, and traffic doesn't need to stop at these non-operative lights (or it may be a written law, for all I know).
In this stretch of roadway, 2 lights were in full operation - at NJ 72 and Bay Ave, and one intersection slightly to the south. In many cases, the lights were on flash.  In an unusual number of cases, the lights were out completely, and in 3 cases, one of the traffic lights spanning was completely missing!

LBI is still a Sandy war zone. Doesn't surprise me that the lights are out - in fact, I'm surprised they let general traffic explore the island already. The written law is to always stop at all non-operative traffic lights. Unwritten law is like NJ traffic circle driving - you're just supposed to know.

jeffandnicole

Quote from: Steve on December 11, 2012, 08:56:52 PM
LBI is still a Sandy war zone. Doesn't surprise me that the lights are out - in fact, I'm surprised they let general traffic explore the island already. The written law is to always stop at all non-operative traffic lights. Unwritten law is like NJ traffic circle driving - you're just supposed to know.

For the most part - it's actually not too bad out there.  I didn't see any sand at all along Long Beach Blvd.  In a few areas there were still some minor debris in the stripped median area.  And piles and piles of trash lined many of the sidewalks.  The road surface was smooth.  It appeared that the few homes that were occupied did have electricity.

The side roads tended to be worse, mostly because there's less room to pile the trash off the roadway.  And Holgate, at the southern end, was truly off limits - a sign there stated the road was open to residents and contractors only.

The Wawas and 7-Elevens (2 or 3 each) remained closed.  A few businesses were open, mostly where LB Blvd & 72 meet.

averill

#34
The shape coded signal lenses are still allowed in Quebec, and are still shown in the MTQ traffic manual.  The province no longer uses them on provincial highways, but they are still used in some local jurisdictions like Laval.  PEI also still uses these.

Cleaned up unused IMG tags - were you trying to insert photos?

KEK Inc.

Out west, they're generally only used in SPUI [interchanges] on the underside of an overpass, or signals on mast-arms that may be obstructed by overpasses/tunnels.
Take the road less traveled.

averill

Quote from: Ian on November 21, 2012, 09:11:57 AM
Quote from: Quillz on November 20, 2012, 10:40:07 PM
Do you prefer horizontal traffic lights? I have to say that I really like the (old?) style used in Quebec, that were horizontally mounted, book-ended with red lights and each color had its own shape (I think the reds were square, the yellow was a triangle and green was a circle.)

I can say I have no preference over horizontal vs. vertical signals. As for the Quebec signals you speak of, as of a few years ago, they do not use the shaped lenses anymore. Here's what they look like now...

They still are allowed and are still used in some cities like Loungil.  But on MTQ they have been discontinued.

sp_redelectric

Quote from: KEK Inc. on June 14, 2013, 09:59:40 PM
Out west, they're generally only used in SPUI [interchanges] on the underside of an overpass, or signals on mast-arms that may be obstructed by overpasses/tunnels.

Rare if nearly non-existent in Oregon or the Portland metro area, but I found these examples:

Columbia House Boulevard, SPUI interchange underneath SR 14, Vancouver

Old Youngs Bay Bridge, U.S. 101 Business Loop, near Astoria

KEK Inc.

Take the road less traveled.

hbelkins

Eastbound US 60/Green I-24 in Paducah, just past the I-24 interchange.



Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.

ET21

There's a few around Chicago, mainly under the L tracks in the Loop.

This one is on Grand underneath Lake Shore Drive

The local weatherman, trust me I can be 99.9% right!
"Show where you're going, without forgetting where you're from"

Clinched:
IL: I-88, I-180, I-190, I-290, I-294, I-355, IL-390
IN: I-80, I-94
SD: I-190
WI: I-90, I-94
MI: I-94, I-196
MN: I-90

Mark68

Quote from: KEK Inc. on August 02, 2013, 06:06:38 AM
http://goo.gl/maps/mjO9H

Broadway in Seattle uses horizontal signals.

Looks like that's due to the overhead power wires for buses.
"When you come to a fork in the road, take it."~Yogi Berra

Alex4897

There's one on US 13/40 at the intersection with DE 273 near an airport.
Why DelDOT decided to use them there is beyond me.
👉😎👉

KEK Inc.

Quote from: Mark68 on September 06, 2013, 05:38:25 AM
Looks like that's due to the overhead power wires for buses.

There's plenty of streets in Seattle that have overhead lines like that with vertical lights.  15th Ave NE by UW.  NW Market St, N 45th St, and NE 45th St through Ballard, Wallingford and U District.  etc

Broadway is the only one I know of in Seattle apart from the underside of overpasses and some drawbridge lifts (SR-513 Montlake Blvd, Univ Bridge (Eastlake Ave), Fremont Bridge (Fremont Ave N), Ballard Bridge (15th Ave NW), etc.)
Take the road less traveled.

FreewayDan

Quote from: achilles765 on November 23, 2012, 01:50:07 PM
These are what we have all over Houston...I kinda like them.  I am so used to seeing them everyday that I sometimes forget that that isn't what all signals are like.

Vertical traffic signals can be found in Galveston:

100_0354 by FreewayDan, on Flickr

...and believe it or not, vertical traffic lights can be found north of downtown Houston along portions of METRORail's North Line extension currently under construction:

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes by bill barfield, on Flickr
LEFT ON GREEN
ARROW ONLY

WNYroadgeek

They're fairly common in New York, particularly at intersections that are at overpasses: http://goo.gl/maps/wtDQn

Big John

 There can be sight restrictions just after an underpass, so agencies often place horizontal traffic signals right after an underpass where they use vertical or doghouse signals everywhere else.

dmuzika

Quote from: Scott5114 on October 26, 2012, 09:58:24 PM
There are a few new ones in downtown Oklahoma City for some reason.

Lawton has a somewhat regular practice of mounting the left-turn signal horizontal and everything else vertical:



That seems to be a reverse with what happens in Alberta.  Alberta and most of Saskatchewan go for horizontal traffic lights, however in Alberta (particularly Edmonton), they'll mount the left-turn signal vertical and everything else horizontal.


mrsman

Is there a standard as to which way the lights are oriented?

It seems like most horizontal lights are R-Y-G.  Are there any that go the opposite way, G-Y-R?

In Sacramento, at the corner of Fulton and El Camino, there is one horizontal light.  Horizontal lights are very rare in California.  To make it stand out, the light has a weird configuation of RRYYG, with the green light being a green straight arrow.

I can't figure out why this light isn't vertical.

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Sacramento,+CA&hl=en&ll=38.6107,-121.401243&spn=0.035747,0.055275&sll=38.804821,-77.236966&sspn=2.281493,3.537598&oq=sacr&hnear=Sacramento,+California&t=m&z=14&layer=c&cbll=38.610678,-121.401471&panoid=nTVcwn0r6iRLeccW30snkQ&cbp=12,89.16,,0,12.44

realjd

Quote from: mrsman on October 13, 2013, 08:09:58 AM
Is there a standard as to which way the lights are oriented?

It seems like most horizontal lights are R-Y-G.  Are there any that go the opposite way, G-Y-R?

In Sacramento, at the corner of Fulton and El Camino, there is one horizontal light.  Horizontal lights are very rare in California.  To make it stand out, the light has a weird configuation of RRYYG, with the green light being a green straight arrow.

I can't figure out why this light isn't vertical.

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Sacramento,+CA&hl=en&ll=38.6107,-121.401243&spn=0.035747,0.055275&sll=38.804821,-77.236966&sspn=2.281493,3.537598&oq=sacr&hnear=Sacramento,+California&t=m&z=14&layer=c&cbll=38.610678,-121.401471&panoid=nTVcwn0r6iRLeccW30snkQ&cbp=12,89.16,,0,12.44

For countries that drive on the right, red is always on the left. For countries that drive on the left, red is often on the right.



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