Taxi GPS 'can change traffic lights'

Dave! · 19-04-2012 11:02AM

They spoke about this bollox on Newstalk too. Fcuking goons.

Professey Chin · 19-04-2012 11:05AM

And these are the people who rise into power.................
Can anyone recommend a good place to live that isnt here?

mconigol · 19-04-2012 12:06PM

kirving · 19-04-2012 12:26PM

How are idiots like this still being elected?! GPS is a pretty simple concept really.

Plazaman · 19-04-2012 12:35PM

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Some traffic lights have built in RFID enabled sensors to give emergency vehicles or public transport priority access, unless the GPS in question was fitted with one of these or there was some frequency conflict with another RFID transmitter such as the eFlow chip it could possibly trigger something.

^^^ What he said. However there is no (known and/or marketable) device that is a GPS and a pre-emptive traffic light system in it unless it was made by the person themselves (and I doubt this Councillor is much of an electronic engineer).

AFAIK (and I'm open to correction) there is no such system in place in any City in Ireland. Emergency Vehicles have the ability to lower electronic pedestrian bollards via a system similar to RFID but not traffic lights.

opinion guy · 19-04-2012 12:54PM

gubbie wrote: »

Taxi drivers shouldn't have them but bus drivers should. They have them in Switzerland. If they have to turn right and there is oncoming traffic, I dunno how, but communication happens and suddenly the bus can turn

It's genius!

Why should busses have them ? They already have their own lanes. THey don't need ability to control traffic lights. That would rightly f**k up traffic flow int he city given the number of busses on certain roads

blowtorch · 19-04-2012 12:55PM

Gee Bag wrote: »

An investigation has been launched? into what? How f*ckwits get elected to be county councillors?

And some of those self same ****wits then get elected to Government.

Listen, wasn't it only recently that there was uproar of sorts when it was learned that councillors went on courses (to Killarney I think) on how to use Facebook (or was it how to turn on a computer). We need these type of people, as otherwise good Comedy might never reach our screens (Father Ted / Kilnaskully etc.etc.)

Could be that traffic lights are set to change automatically, just in case there are some umpa lumpas waiting that can't reach the button?

120_Minutes · 19-04-2012 12:58PM

cisk wrote: »

I was in a taxi in the am before. At every traffic light when nobody was around he would start flashing his lights.

He claimed it would make them change. I had a good chuckle the whole way home.

I have heard this before, claims that certain traffic lights have a sensor that picks up headlight flashes of a car stopped at said lights, as long as the other lanes are unoccupied the lights changed. designed for use late at night so you're not waiting ages at empty light.

i was sceptical too.

Baneblade · 19-04-2012 01:00PM

i do think the new lights have sensors on them that will change the lights at smaller junctions during off peak hours if a car stops at a junction and no traffic is present in the other direction.

i dont drive but i have noticed some lights change a lot faster at night when a car pulls up to them and its not a major intersection

and guess whos going to have to pay for this "investigation"

Paparazzo · 19-04-2012 01:06PM

kylith wrote: »

Bwahahahaha! How did he come to that conclusion?

He reckoned he swiped his card on the photocopier, but when he got back to his desk his photocopier card was there and the card in his pocket was his leap card. He reckoned his name came up on the photocopier display and everything!
Guy on the radio from Leap said customers name isn't even stored digitally on the card. Then joe started to go quiet about it

Flincher · 19-04-2012 01:06PM

I've convinced my nephew that I can change the lights whenever I wanted. If we are stopped junctions where you can see the lights for traffic coming a different direction, when the other lights turn red, I shout "CHANGESKI LIGHTSKI NOWSKI", and our lights go green.

M cebee · 19-04-2012 01:06PM

i just tried it and it works

no shiit!

19-04-2012 01:06PM

120_Minutes wrote: »

I have heard this before, claims that certain traffic lights have a sensor that picks up headlight flashes of a car stopped at said lights, as long as the other lanes are unoccupied the lights changed. designed for use late at night so you're not waiting ages at empty light.

i was sceptical too.

Baneblade wrote: »

i do think the new lights have sensors on them that will change the lights at smaller junctions during off peak hours if a car stops at a junction and no traffic is present in the other direction.

i dont drive but i have noticed some lights change a lot faster at night when a car pulls up to them and its not a major intersection

and guess whos going to have to pay for this "investigation"

They are not new at all, they've been around for years. I'm surprised at how many people don't know how traffic light sensors work. This is what they look like: http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/EXID10846/images/InductiveLoopSensor%281%29.jpg. A groove is cut into the tarmac, the wire is laid, then they're sealed back up. You can see them very clearly if you look at the ground just before the white line. Here's an explanation of how they work: http://auto.howstuffworks.com/car-driving-safety/safety-regulatory-devices/question234.htm

It's hilarious to watch idiots who don't know that you're supposed to stop before the white line at lights, then sit there complaining about how long the lights take to change

Professey Chin · 19-04-2012 01:08PM

28064212 wrote: »

It's hilarious to watch idiots who don't know that you're supposed to stop before the white line at lights, then sit there complaining about how long the lights take to change

Happened to me coming home from work once. Car in front of me was too far back so the lights kept skipping our junction. Ended up having to get out and tell him to move up for the switch to realise he was there.

seamus · 19-04-2012 01:11PM

120_Minutes wrote: »

I have heard this before, claims that certain traffic lights have a sensor that picks up headlight flashes of a car stopped at said lights, as long as the other lanes are unoccupied the lights changed. designed for use late at night so you're not waiting ages at empty light.

This came from a US urban myth because some lights over there had sensors which could detect the lights from emergency vehicles (but ignored normal vehicles).

phill106 · 19-04-2012 01:18PM

Perhaps his gps had a MIRT Device

Mylow · 19-04-2012 01:19PM

The Great Chinholio wrote: »

Happened to me coming home from work once. Car in front of me was too far back so the lights kept skipping our junction. Ended up having to get out and tell him to move up for the switch to realise he was there.

Or the ones who cross over the white line then wonder why the light's dont change for them.

dilallio · 25-04-2012 04:01PM

Here's an update from today's Galway Indo.
Looks like councillor/taxi-driver Frank Fahy was correct in his allegations.

http://galwayindependent.com/stories/item/2051/2012-17/Council-to-tackle-rogue-junctions

Galway City Council has admitted that outdated pedestrian lights across the city can be controlled by the on-board computers of local taxis.
As revealed by the Galway Independent, taxi drivers can inadvertently change the signal at pedestrian junctions in some areas of the city by pressing a button on their on-board computer.
And this week, Director of Services Ciaran Hayes confirmed that the council was taking action on the issue.
“This is the case and it is something that we are working on at the moment. It only affects older pedestrian lights at certain junctions in the city and we have now got in touch with the supplier about the issue.
“They will be changing the magnetic field around the lights over the next few weeks and that will address the problem. It is a minor issue, it has no impact on the new lights or on the Urban Traffic Control Centre.”
According to Cllr Fahy, the issue affects the junctions at Dunnes Stores on the Headford Road, Woodquay, University Road, Galway Technical Institute, GMIT, Spanish Arch and the House Hotel.
The anomaly was brought to attention of Galway City Council recently by taxi driver Cllr Frank Fahy, who said that he discovered the quirk while waiting for a fare near a junction at GMIT.
“Every taxi that works for a company in the city has an on-board computer. When there is a transaction on the computer, like when you are checking your status to see if you are number one or two in the system, you have to press one or two buttons. So when you do, it shows up the information, but it also changes the traffic lights. It only happens at the pedestrian lights, thank God, or else the city would be in an awful heap!,” he said.

Seachmall · 25-04-2012 04:03PM

Well fuck me. I guess an apology is in order.

Won't be getting it from me, but someone should apologise.

25-04-2012 04:06PM

dilallio wrote: »

Here's an update from today's Galway Indo.
Looks like councillor/taxi-driver Frank Fahy was correct in his allegations.

http://galwayindependent.com/stories/item/2051/2012-17/Council-to-tackle-rogue-junctions

So when he said "I noticed that when I used the GPS computer to check my position, the lights changed", he was actually talking bollocks?

Stark · 25-04-2012 04:10PM

They will be changing the magnetic field around the lights over the next few weeks and that will address the problem.

Uhmmm.... Methinks this was something they made up in order to save face for him.

fishy fishy · 25-04-2012 04:10PM

seamus wrote: »

Surely if taxi drivers were able to change the lights with their GPS boxes, they would turn them green, and not red? :rolleyes:

What a fncking numpty. Complete waste of council time and money.

that would depend on if he wanted to add money to the fare by stopping at every red light while leaving the car running, therefore all adding the fare up

who the numpty now??

sf80 · 25-04-2012 04:13PM

28064212 wrote: »

So when he said "I noticed that when I used the GPS computer to check my position, the lights changed", he was actually talking bollocks?

Sounds like someone just confused on board computer with GPS. Electronics in the lights improperly shielded from interference by other electronics. The taxi computers might communicate back to base over GSM or CB or something.

opinion guy · 25-04-2012 04:21PM

Stark wrote: »

They will be changing the magnetic field around the lights over the next few weeks and that will address the problem.

Uhmmm.... Methinks this was something they made up in order to save face for him.

Lol.....there will be some bloke with a hazmat suit on and a toy instrument walking around Galway going up to traffic lights and making sci fi sound effects with his mouth and saying stuff like 'oh yes the magentic field is ****fing alignment now.....just a few more minutes....'

dilallio · 25-04-2012 04:27PM

28064212 wrote: »

So when he said "I noticed that when I used the GPS computer to check my position, the lights changed", he was actually talking bollocks?

Not really.

The system used by the major taxi companies in Galway, maps Galway into various zones. It uses an onboard GPS system to determing where the taxi currently is, but it uses an onboard radio system to relay this information back to base.

The driver can push a couple of buttons which tells them how many taxi's are in a particular zone, so they can go to a zone with less taxis. This increases their chance of a pickup.

It looks like it's this radio system, and not the GPS receiver itself, which is interfering with the pedestrian lights.

Because this radio system is integrated with the onboard GPS system, Frank Fahy was calling it a 'GPS System'.

Earlier posters are completely correct insofar as it is highly unlikely for a GPS system to interfere with traffic or pedestrian lights. A radio system though which transmits information could interfere with lights, depending on certain circumstances.

I don't believe that Galway City Council are now admitting that it's happening, just to cover up for one of their councillors, and neither do I believe that Frank Fahy made this up either out of stupidity or naivety.

token101 · 25-04-2012 04:36PM

opinion guy wrote: »

Lol.....there will be some bloke with a hazmat suit on and a toy instrument walking around Galway going up to traffic lights and making sci fi sound effects with his mouth and saying stuff like 'oh yes the magentic field is ****fing alignment now.....just a few more minutes....'

That'll will cost them few grand to fix. Plus VAT. Plus consultant fees. So that comes to €30 million.

Ellis Dee · 25-04-2012 04:44PM

Trams in numerous European cities are fitted with devices that enable them to speed up the rate at which traffic lights change to suit them. However, I doubt if there are many taxi drivers anywhere - even in Dublin - rash enough to use such equipment even if they could get hold of it. It would be highly illegal and the insurance-related implications are horrendous.:):):)

rubadub · 25-04-2012 04:45PM

No need for new gadgets, most taxis come equipped with those magical hazard lights that allow them to do anything they want.

Taxi GPS 'can change traffic lights'

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