Can a phone app actually change a red light? This man seems to think so

[roadman65]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Li5ZgXCSNU
A youtube video of a man who claims he has the technology to change a traffic signal's orientation through his phone.

[jeffandnicole]

I was behind someone the other day who was flashing his headlights at the traffic light.  He flashed them enough to eventually get the light to change. Or, he could've spent the 20 seconds sitting there like a normal person.  Sadly, it turned out he's my neighbor.

As for this video...3 minutes of talking about a flashlight app.

[realjd]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Li5ZgXCSNU
A youtube video of a man who claims he has the technology to change a traffic signal's orientation through his phone.

That man is full of shit.

[agentsteel53]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Li5ZgXCSNU
A youtube video of a man who claims he has the technology to change a traffic signal's orientation through his phone.

ooh, telekinesis.  can we also change the orientation of those yellow diamond signs installed upside down so that the green light is on top?  (I promise to stay out of Tipperary Hill with my new power.)

on the actual topic: ambulances all are equipped to do so.  it's highly illegal for anyone else to use this sort of broadcast, though.

[roadfro]

Yeah...no...

In Nevada, at least, most signals have use a dedicated system (OptiComm, I think, is the name). It works on this principle, but the strobe is modulated a particular way and is much faster than this slow Moors Code flashlight app. Also, the sensor is tiny and needs a focused light beam more powerful that what a cell phone flash would provide.

[mjb2002]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Li5ZgXCSNU
A youtube video of a man who claims he has the technology to change a traffic signal's orientation through his phone.

That's laughable. He doesn't have magic, so it is impossible for him to do it.

[Alps]

I have had non-zero success with the high-beam trick. That said, most signals use radio (or other non-visual) frequencies now, so non-zero is still very small. But twice is better than never.

[US81]

Different technologies in different locales. Some systems are tied to the police/fire/ambulance/bus driver flashing the high-beams - but I think the high-beam flash has to come from a transponder equipped vehicle in most of these systems. I know there are competing technologies, so - who knows? maybe it works where the app-developer is, but I'm skeptical....

[roadfro]

If we think logically... A fire truck approaches a traffic signal and needs to get the light to change. This flash from the video takes several seconds to transmit. If the light system on the fire truck transmitted that slowly, the truck would have to hop on the other side of road and blow through the red light because the it would take too damned long to transmit the change message.

[jakeroot]

Even if it did work, which I would be extremely surprised if it did, it's still a twat move. I'd like to think signals are timed in a manner that makes traffic move as smoothly as possible, and screwing with that system, purely for your own leisure, is so remarkably self-centered it makes my head hurt.

[Molandfreak]

I'd like to think signals are timed in a manner that makes traffic move as smoothly as possible,

[jakeroot]

I'd like to think signals are timed in a manner that makes traffic move as smoothly as possible,

I'd like to think signals are timed in a manner that makes traffic move as smoothly as possible,

[roadman]

If we think logically... A fire truck approaches a traffic signal and needs to get the light to change. This flash from the video takes several seconds to transmit. If the light system on the fire truck transmitted that slowly, the truck would have to hop on the other side of road and blow through the red light because the it would take too damned long to transmit the change message.

In Wakefield (MA), the intersection of North Avenue and Albion Street has emergency vehicle pre-emption.  There is an adjacent "base facility" on North Avenue run by a local ambulance company that is so close to the intersection that the ambulances leaving the facility on calls usually end up going through the lights before the pre-emption sequence fully engages.

[Scott5114]

I have had non-zero success with the high-beam trick. That said, most signals use radio (or other non-visual) frequencies now, so non-zero is still very small. But twice is better than never.

Flashing your high-beams is not meant to trigger the preemption routine used by emergency vehicles. Rather, the intent is to make you more visible to optical vehicle detectors and put in a signal change request if it seems like you weren't picked up by the camera. There is a particular light by my house that sometimes seems to not notice me, but if I turn on my brights the lights cycle for me like they should. (Keep in mind I go through there after 11 PM, so the signal should, barring conflicting traffic, cycle at once whenever I pull up to it.)

[Brandon]

I'd like to think signals are timed in a manner that makes traffic move as smoothly as possible,

I'd like to think signals are timed in a manner that makes traffic move as smoothly as possible,

You need to come to Illinois, "The Land of Completely Actuated Signals".  It's maddening to have one signal (yours) turn green and have the next one randomly turn red in front of you.

[jakeroot]

I'd like to think signals are timed in a manner that makes traffic move as smoothly as possible,

I'd like to think signals are timed in a manner that makes traffic move as smoothly as possible,

You need to come to Illinois, "The Land of Completely Actuated Signals".  It's maddening to have one signal (yours) turn green and have the next one randomly turn red in front of you.

Well then, perhaps we need to invest our money into timing signals rather than creating BS "signal-changer" app. Fix the problem at the source.

And Seattle was the same way for me today. Red-Red-Red-GREEN!!! **hauls ass** signal decides it wants to be red...wait wait wait. Repeat sequence.

[Alps]

I have had non-zero success with the high-beam trick. That said, most signals use radio (or other non-visual) frequencies now, so non-zero is still very small. But twice is better than never.

Flashing your high-beams is not meant to trigger the preemption routine used by emergency vehicles. Rather, the intent is to make you more visible to optical vehicle detectors and put in a signal change request if it seems like you weren't picked up by the camera. There is a particular light by my house that sometimes seems to not notice me, but if I turn on my brights the lights cycle for me like they should. (Keep in mind I go through there after 11 PM, so the signal should, barring conflicting traffic, cycle at once whenever I pull up to it.)

I read about the trick in Car and Driver years ago. I've flashed my high beams from quite some distance away, and it changed quickly. At least one of the times I know it was a preemption because it screwed up the phasing.
@jake: a) Whatever, b) This tends to only work at night when the lights are more visible, so there's much less traffic and no concern about progression

[jakeroot]

OR we can just install roundabouts everywhere and then no need to worry about getting antsy at a red light. Of course, you would say there's no room. Yes, in downtown cores, no. But those are the locations where timed lights succeed. In rural areas, where timed lights are not necessary, a constant flow of traffic would seem desirable. That's where sensor-controlled signals come into play. Of course, some people are still in too much of a hurry to wait for those. Roundabouts seem to be the only logical choice for the next generation of intersection construction.

Anyways, I'm off topic now. So we're saying that this app, or at least the concept, works? There's just been so many of these types of apps that can supposedly change signals from red to green that never work, I find it hard to believe that this one does.

[Duke87]

I'm assuming that if you can pull this off successfully that you can also get a ticket for it. Can't imagine there wouldn't be a statute governing the use of preemption, although if it references devices designed for it rather than tricks using devices that are legal for anyone to have, you may get off on a technicality.

[jeffandnicole]

OR we can just install roundabouts everywhere and then no need to worry about getting antsy at a red light. Of course, you would say there's no room. Yes, in downtown cores, no. But those are the locations where timed lights succeed. In rural areas, where timed lights are not necessary, a constant flow of traffic would seem desirable. That's where sensor-controlled signals come into play. Of course, some people are still in too much of a hurry to wait for those. Roundabouts seem to be the only logical choice for the next generation of intersection construction.

Anyways, I'm off topic now. So we're saying that this app, or at least the concept, works? There's just been so many of these types of apps that can supposedly change signals from red to green that never work, I find it hard to believe that this one does.

If you see the video, he never bothers to show it actually working.   He just blathers on for 3 minutes.

[Henry]

Yeah, right! And besides, the pedestrian signals already have the ability to be changed at the push of a button, so this would be redundant.

[ET21]

 

[roadfro]

I have had non-zero success with the high-beam trick. That said, most signals use radio (or other non-visual) frequencies now, so non-zero is still very small. But twice is better than never.

Flashing your high-beams is not meant to trigger the preemption routine used by emergency vehicles. Rather, the intent is to make you more visible to optical vehicle detectors and put in a signal change request if it seems like you weren't picked up by the camera. There is a particular light by my house that sometimes seems to not notice me, but if I turn on my brights the lights cycle for me like they should. (Keep in mind I go through there after 11 PM, so the signal should, barring conflicting traffic, cycle at once whenever I pull up to it.)

The video detection cameras typically work on sensing changes in contrast within a predefined frame of the video image. At night, and especially if your car happens to be darker or similarly colored to pavement (and/or if your lights aren't bright or within the frame of detection), the software may not pick up your vehicle very well. This is where flashing brights can be helpful. One thing to remember is to always stop behind the stop line, as the engineers very rarely draw the camera detection zones on the video image beyond the stop line.

[GaryV]

My dad used to blow at the red lights saying he could make it change.  It fooled us kids for a while, until we realized he was seeing the yellow glow for the cross street when the light was about to change.