Traffic red light jumping - devices to detect

tmcw

I was out earlier, and was noticing all the cameras and devices mounted on poles and gantrys at various intersections, and was wondering if there are devices on our roads that detect if a car has jumped a red light? If there are, what do they look like?

I remember a few years back seeing a sign on the N4 above the M50 (IIRC) saying that there was one around there, but haven't seen any other signs like it ever.

markpb

tmcw wrote: »

I was out earlier, and was noticing all the cameras and devices mounted on poles and gantrys at various intersections, and was wondering if there are devices on our roads that detect if a car has jumped a red light?

The things you're talking about are probably traffic detectors - they're used to detect the presence of cars at a red light and trigger a change from red to green. Sometimes they use induction loops installed in the road surface instead.

I've never heard of red light cameras being installed in Ireland but it's possible.

tmcw

Cheers for the reply Mark.

I took photos of a few of them, but the images from Google Earth are better. I've attached one from Newlands Cross, heading towards Naas. You can see the gantry with 4 devices monitoring each lane. Are those traffic monitors or detectors or cameras? There's another set on the other side of the intersection heading into the city centre.

There are other things around that intersection, like behind that photo, there is a large pole with what looks to be a traffic camera, but further back the road there is a lamppost with another device on it.

Am I paranoid, thinking all these devices are monitoring me?

markpb

tmcw wrote: »

I've attached one from Newlands Cross, heading towards Naas. You can see the gantry with 4 devices monitoring each lane. Are those traffic monitors or detectors? There's another set on the other side of the intersection heading into the city centre.

The ones in your photo are traffic counters. The LAs use a mix of those and induction loops to count the traffic passing a certain point. The ones on the M50 do a mixture of traffic counting and license plate reading so they can measure how long it takes cars, on average, to pass from one junction to the next and provide feedback on the gantry displays.

tmcw

Thanks Mark, I suppose the data from these devices are also used by organisations like the AA for their radio traffic update bulletins?

corktina

it will come, they already have cameras in the UK to detect amber gamblers and also to detect misusers of bus lanes etc.

AugustusMinimus

If they ever do install them, they'll need face recognition software for cyclists. God knows none of them stop for red lights.

Alanstrainor

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

If they ever do install them, they'll need face recognition software for cyclists. God knows none of them stop for red lights.

Lets not go down this road again please.

Buffman

This might be one on the Con Colbert Road at the South Circular junction. It's still there, but is now about twice the height and painted yellow. It has the look of a speed camera but there's no road markings.

tmcw

Buffman wrote: »

This might be one on the Con Colbert Road at the South Circular junction. It's still there, but is now about twice the height and painted yellow. It has the look of a speed camera but there's no road markings.

That's the one I was thinking about, I thought it was further out, and that there was a sign warning it was there, but couldn't see any sign in the run-up to it. Hazy memory perhaps.