Need tips on timing signal lights.
 

I have a 4 mile to work commute down a city street with a 45 mph speed limit and about 20 lights.

Every once in a while I will hit a majority of the lights, I have actually hit every single one of them a time or two. But never seem to pull it off the next day, it is more about luck than my skills aparently.

What tips do you guys have on pulling pulling off hitting your signals while green?

Sorry if this is a much talked about subject and I didn't search enough.

Brian

Only 4 miles.... ( I am big on bicycles)

Are they trigger lights or actual timed lights? If they are timed, "time it right". If they are triggered by other cars, coast when cars are triggering it, and go when it's green. This is one of those things, it's easier to do than explain.

I am thinking about the bike. I think as summer comes around that is exactly what I am going to do.

On the lights, I don't know if they are timed, any way of finding out? I don't see any kind of pattern. I think being that cross traffic is so light on the majority of them I would say they are triggering them.

Brian

i check cross traffic If they're turning still it means there is a WHOLE cycle to go through Left Turns then straight across I'll slow down up to a half a mile ahead just get off the gas and start to brake. if they're going consistently i'll slow down a little closer to the lights and watch the behavior if they're slowing down it means the light is probably yellow or red and there's about a 3 second delay before the lights in my direction change There is more to this I"m just not gonna explain it all right now It is a VERY good way to save gas though no doubt

Yay for the bike.

Sit and watch them, do they turn automatically? Or does a car have to pull up to a red light?

Thanks guys, watching cross traffic to see if they are slowing down......that is something I knew to do but don't, cool!

I will spend some time and see if they are automatic.

Brian

If it's green and there's at least one car sitting at the light, and you are at least say 200ft away, it will be red before you get there most likely.

Yes, you are right and this is what I wasn't doing, looking at waiting cross traffic. Things are going very well, I am getting better and better at this. Also, braking short and then letting the car roll up to the light....keeping the car moving until it turns green has been a big help.

Brian

Here in NZ, I got a tip from the traffic engineers that the average speed the traffic light modulation is designed for is 40 kph. Whenever I approach a traffic light, I slow down to 40 kph from 50 and I just feel like I can control the green light to go my way.

Yeah, asking the cop would help determine how they are designed to change. Otherwise, get yourself a stopwatch, and race from one light to the next, be always first to reach - time each segment, from the previous light turning green to this light turning green. Then on the next pass, measure distance between each. Now you have a template to follow, to hit the green wave in an assured manner.

This will work if the logic is not time-variant. If the lights turn faster at one time and slower in another, this won't work. Also if the lights are triggered with cross-traffic, this won't work.

Coasting to a stop, trying to conserve momentum by avoiding complete stop by braking early, if you anticipate stopping, or simply pushing your luck and coasting on on a stale light, banking on it turning green in time when you hit it, are other alternatives.