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Old 05-03-2010, 06:57 PM   #33 (permalink)
aerohead
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why

Quote:
Originally Posted by Patrick View Post
A cloverleaf at every intersection would require a lot more land and pavement, upping the expense a lot. It wouldn't be practical in an urban setting like Manhattan, where land values are sky high.

Why can't they time a left turn light?
The time required to process the left turn signal traffic creates the bottleneck for all other lanes,essentially making synchronization impossible.
You may have observed dozens of vehicles idling at a stop while only a few vehicles make the left turn.
It's pure entropy.We can't afford the convenience of the few to overshadow the larger issue.
As to extreme urban environments,it would be better for the few to sacrifice a portion of their time by rounding the block clockwise to orient themselves in their desired direction,rather than ask the majority of traffic to consume their fuel at a stop.
Flowing traffic is real wealth,whereas property values are an arbitrary and artificial construct.
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