Any traffic signal fans here?

[Chris]

How do you guys like Dutch traffic signals?


nearly all Dutch traffic signals look like this, and are in 99% of the time placed before the intersection like on this picture.

[Hellfighter]

Those are pretty interesting, and it's fun to see lights before the intersection.

[Ian]

Do all you traffic signal fans know there is a forum dedicated to signal fanning?
http://forums.signaltraffic.com/index.php

Ian

[florida]

They aren't taking any new applicants    And they don't process users who use free email accounts 

[Revive 755]

Those are pretty interesting, and it's fun to see lights before the intersection.

There's at least two cases of having stoplights before the intersection in Nebraska.  Granted they are on slightly skewed intersections.

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=40.772433,-96.702347&spn=0,359.989014&z=17&layer=c&cbll=40.772213,-96.702167&panoid=e39cc7KQkHljPnl37GUktw&cbp=12,116.52,,0,-6.78

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=40.754653,-96.644658&spn=0,359.994507&z=18&layer=c&cbll=40.754703,-96.64475&panoid=OPfBCyku2kbMt26jfteNZA&cbp=12,113.92,,0,4.03

[US71]

Here's an odd set-up from the 40's (I think)
http://photos.ark-ives.com/deane/0664_06r.jpg

[Hellfighter]

An early way of putting lights at Railroad Crossings! Very Cool! 

[Tom]

Regarding beacon lights, there's 1 in Heyden, Ontario, Canada that flashes slower than most others, and 1 in St. Louis, Michigan that flashes faster than most others.

[RustyK]

I would be one as well - my sister got my son one of those $10 "traffic lights" where the bulbs inside of it just all blink.  I enjoyed the fact that it's a traffic light, but the random blinking drove me nuts.  So I found a circuit board online that would allow me to create a "functional" traffic signal - now it works correctly.   When I was a kid, my Grandfather managed to get one of the timer mechanisms from a signal - I rememember it being a long, almost cylander shaped piece of metal that rotated, like many wheels/gears that rotated around that showed a particular light.  I can't properly describe it, and haven't found a good picture of one (although admittedly, haven't tried hard to find one...)

[6a]

Van Wert, Ohio.  I want to duck every time I drive under it 

[SidS1045]

There are several in Poteau, OK that "black out" or do a double light, like this one in Hugo


I'll have to look for my Poteau snaps... they seem to be missing.

In Massachusetts, we have another usage for red and yellow together, although it's slowly being phased out: All vehicles must stop, pedestrians can cross.  Signals which include a red-and-yellow interval are marked by a red-yellow-red stripe on the signal posts.

[Ian]

In Massachusetts, we have another usage for red and yellow together, although it's slowly being phased out: All vehicles must stop, pedestrians can cross.  Signals which include a red-and-yellow interval are marked by a red-yellow-red stripe on the signal posts.

I remember seeing a few of these in Salem last year. I really like them, not an everyday thing you see. Massachusetts itself has some really cool signal installs.

[busman_49]

Definitely a traffic light fan here.

I don't have too many, nae, maybe one or 2 photos directly involving traffic lights, but I can definitely refer those who are traveling through Northeast Ohio, or those who like to do street-level Google Earth-ing, to spend some time cruising around for a great array of traffic lights, although there has been a big push in recent years to replace all older cable-hung signal systems with new mast-mounted ones -- Especially in Cuyahoga County.  Not only that, but its getting rarer by the day to find any Green or Black traffic lights in Akron.

Some highly recommended areas:

East Cleveland (best visited in the daytime -- trust me):  Most of the lights off of the main routed thoroughfares (US-6, US 20) in this very poor neighborhood go back to the 50's and 60's easily. Had I not moved away from Cleveland 3 years ago, this would have been a great area to spend the day taking pictures of literally a working museum of lights and signs from over 40 years ago. Best Bets -- Superior Road.

Lorain County (West of Cleveland):  A lot of intersections with 50's/60's lights -- many with one light in each direction (must be fun when bulbs burn out) a lot with direction arrow lenses.  Best bets -- Lorain Proper and South Amherst off of SR-58 (Along old SR-113).

Ravenna (East of Akron):  A wonderful array of old-school metal lights.  The city even went as far as buying old lights and refurbishing them to place on the main drag (SR-59) downtown.  Best Bets: The old SR 44 alignment through town.

Youngstown:  A city so poor and decrepit, they are trying to close large areas of neighborhoods to avoid having to maintain/light/plow/etc... them.  Best Bets -- Near downtown.  There are still some intersections with the old Blink-o-matic(?) neon crosswalk lights that are still working, while others have been broken for so long one could probably be disassemble one in broad daylight with nobody noticing or caring.

And if anybody ever does venture into these parts, give us a show and tell, please

Ravenna: http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x182/busman_49/Ravenna%20OH%20052309/
Youngstown: http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x182/busman_49/Youngstown%20OH%20030610/

I have come to find out that there are a good 15 or so more intersections in Youngstown that I have yet to visit.  Maybe one of these days...

[burgess87]

Big fan of signals, especially Texas's horizontal ones.  For some reason, I always liked the left turn signals with the double reds (R R Y G).

[Scott5114]

There are several in Poteau, OK that "black out" or do a double light, like this one in Hugo


I'll have to look for my Poteau snaps... they seem to be missing.

In Massachusetts, we have another usage for red and yellow together, although it's slowly being phased out: All vehicles must stop, pedestrians can cross.  Signals which include a red-and-yellow interval are marked by a red-yellow-red stripe on the signal posts.

Didn't Mass at one time also have a blinking green indication at one point?

[RustyK]

Didn't Mass at one time also have a blinking green indication at one point?

The blinking green is something I'd like to see make it's way down here - it's common up in BC, used to show that the signal can be controlled by pedestrians (ie, they can hit the button to cross and the signal will change).   


The Red-Yellow thing - a couple of years ago, I traveled to Israel for a friend's wedding.  Just before a light is to turn green, while the red light is still illuminated, the yellow light illuminates - almost like the "christmas tree" for drag racing.  I thought it was cool, but can see how that might encourage the drag racing mentality to gun it once green did hit.

[agentsteel53]

Just before a light is to turn green, while the red light is still illuminated, the yellow light illuminates - almost like the "christmas tree" for drag racing.

the reason for that is so that drivers with manual transmission cars (much more common outside of the US) can put the clutch down and the car into gear.

[SidS1045]

Didn't Mass at one time also have a blinking green indication at one point?

We still have it.  It is posted at crosswalks that aren't at intersections, where pedestrians can push a button to stop all traffic, and in front of firehouses where departing fire-fighting vehicles can stop all traffic.

[SignBridge]

Sid, the blinking green crosswalk signal can be at an intersection too. I've seen one in Braintree like that. Although it's at an intersection, the pedestrian activated signal exists for the crosswalk.

[Alps]

Sid, the blinking green crosswalk signal can be at an intersection too. I've seen one in Braintree like that. Although it's at an intersection, the pedestrian activated signal exists for the crosswalk.

When it's at an intersection, the main road has blinking green and the side road has blinking red.  Ped activation changes main road to red and side road to green.  I've only seen this at a one-way T intersection (side road at Morrissey Blvd. I think) such that the crosswalk was before the intersection.  Not a bad idea to have this on its way out.

[UptownRoadGeek]

Typical suburban New Orleans set up:

[Ian]

Typical suburban New Orleans set up:

I spy 3M signals! I really like the green color, as well as those mast arms!

[SignBridge]

ALPS, yes the one I saw in Braintree, Ma. was at a t-intersection of a main road, and a side-street, with a crosswalk on the main road. I think it was for a school, not sure.

[Tom]

Here's a webcam in Coldwater, Michigan showing an intersection with traffic lights (looks better at night):
http://libcam.coldwater.org/view/viewer_index.shtml?id=52774

Found these 2 photos on Wikipedia and Flickr, and one thing they have in common is that there are traffic lights where at least one pair each is showing red, green, and yellow:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Gastonia,_NC.jpg
http://www.flickr.com/photos/eridony/5627433479/

[Kacie Jane]

Here's an odd set-up from the 40's (I think)
http://photos.ark-ives.com/deane/0664_06r.jpg

http://g.co/maps/annss

There's a somewhat similar installation in existence in Marysville, WA.  Granted there are several other signal heads for the direction in question, and I have yet to figure out exactly what the purpose is of the "shorty" signal in the median, but hey, it's unique and it looks cool I guess.

ETA: My wife (Marysville native), who is most definitely not a road/signalgeek, reminded me that the median signal is the only one with the left turn arrow.  So there you go.