Breaking lights at empty crossroads = victimless crime, or is it?

Hooks Golf Handicap · 05-10-2017 12:39PM #1

My local village has one set traffic lights on our centre crossroads.
A few years ago the village was bypassed yet the lights still remained.
Locals have now taken to ignoring the red & just yield for any traffic.
If you were stopped at the red light on a quiet day any car behind you would start laying on the horn to bully you on.

People follow laws when they make sense but soon revert to type when there's no logic.
Anyway, victimless crime or stringing up offence ?

_Brian · 05-10-2017 12:43PM

The question reminds me of a sign in a kitchen in a restaurant.

“Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is looking”

Henry Ford III · 05-10-2017 12:43PM

Pretty simple answer. Red light always means stop.

Dravokivich · 05-10-2017 12:44PM

They can push on their horn till their ears bleed for all I care. What's the name of this place so I can avoid it?

James Bond Junior · 05-10-2017 12:59PM

A garda van did it in front of me the other night in the middle of Limerick city. No traffic coming out on the main avenue so they just went. This was at 8.30 pm.

If they can do it...

Henry Ford III · 05-10-2017 01:03PM

James Bond Junior wrote: »

A garda van did it in front of me the other night in the middle of Limerick city. No traffic coming out on the main avenue so they just went. This was at 8.30 pm.

If they can do it...

You can't.

mfceiling · 05-10-2017 01:03PM

5 a.m one morning and I'm sitting at a red light at the foxrock/brennanstown road crossroads. Should I go or wait....the garda car that came through on green 10 seconds later made me fair happy I sat my ground.

biko · 05-10-2017 01:03PM

So if the garda van where to jump off a cliff...

Tylerdurex · 05-10-2017 01:05PM

biko wrote: »

So if the garda van where to jump off a cliff...

They wouldn't

duffman3833 · 05-10-2017 01:13PM

similar situation but with shopping center car park entrance, not cross roads. It has a set of lights and the shopping center closes at 9pm but the light still go red. There are shutters on the entrance so its completely pointless once there down but i still stop. Unless it like 3am and no one around i would carefully stop then go once all clear

Sue Pa Key Pa · 05-10-2017 01:19PM

So, your village prohibits outsiders driving through it, given that they are not familiar with the by-laws that you've all adopted?

jca · 05-10-2017 01:24PM

Did it once at a pedestrian crossing that the people were well clear of, unmarked i40 behind me pulled me over and read me the riot act. He didn't do me even though he took my name licence etc, needless to say I won't do that again in a hurry.
In the Netherlands after a certain time at night the lights turn flashing amber at the quieter junctions, give way to the right then prevails.

fancy pigeon · 05-10-2017 01:26PM

Sue Pa Key Pa wrote: »

So, your village prohibits outsiders driving through it, given that they are not familiar with the by-laws that you've all adopted?

I'm genuinely baffled that people of this village would blatantly ignore the red lights.

If they have no qualms doing that, what else would they have no qualms about doing on the roads that we all share?

Caliden · 05-10-2017 01:56PM

fancy pigeon wrote: »

I'm genuinely baffled that people of this village would blatantly ignore the red lights.

If they have no qualms doing that, what else would they have no qualms about doing on the roads that we all share?

Calm down city boy, tis only a set of lights

Hooks Golf Handicap · 05-10-2017 02:10PM

fancy pigeon wrote: »

I'm genuinely baffled that people of this village would blatantly ignore the red lights.

If they have no qualms doing that, what else would they have no qualms about doing on the roads that we all share?

Firstly, it's not Red Lights, it's the red light, singular.
Honestly, once you sit there for over a minute waiting for it to turn green the urge would corrupt the most honest of drivers.
You can see any oncoming clearly in all directions.

I'm not saying it's correct as it's obviously breaking the law.
Could be more a rural/urban debate this one

bazz26 · 05-10-2017 02:40PM

Locals should be petitioning their councilors to either change the frequency of the light change or have them removed altogether. All it takes is just the once for someone to pull out on a red light and get t-boned. This being typical Ireland though it's easier to just disregard rules and laws when it's convenient and there's nobody around to enforce them. Sure it's grand, everyone does it.

DaveyDave · 05-10-2017 02:53PM

I have this problem driving home from work at 1am. It's a pain in the arse alright but it's the law.

The only time I went through a red was at 5:30am on my bicycle, the lights changed twice for the odd car on the other sides but not me. Same again at 1:30am.

honda boi · 05-10-2017 03:00PM

When I was working,I'd be commuting on the bike very early or late at night and at a couple of lights it wouldn't pick up the bike so would stay red until a car came.
When a car doesn't come I check to make sure its clear and just go.

fancy pigeon · 05-10-2017 03:14PM

Caliden wrote: »

Calm down city boy, tis only a set of lights

If you want to search some posts of mine, you'll find out I'm an out and outright culchie that lives in a bog

I don't know what traffic lights are, you'll have to pardon my ignorance as electricity and running water are new to me

Hooks Golf Handicap wrote: »

Firstly, it's not Red Lights, it's the red light, singular.
Honestly, once you sit there for over a minute waiting for it to turn green the urge would corrupt the most honest of drivers.
You can see any oncoming clearly in all directions.

I'm not saying it's correct as it's obviously breaking the law.
Could be more a rural/urban debate this one

Could they not campaign to have them removed/speak to a councilor if so?

_Kaiser_ · 05-10-2017 03:16PM

google maps link? I'm all curious now

ELM327 · 05-10-2017 03:22PM

fancy pigeon wrote: »

If you want to search some posts of mine, you'll find out I'm an out and outright culchie that lives in a bog

I don't know what traffic lights are, you'll have to pardon my ignorance as electricity and running water are new to me

Could they not campaign to have them removed/speak to a councilor if so?

Can we make an announcement at the local mass, if it's the locals doing it perhaps they wouldnt want to be announced publicly.

fancy pigeon · 05-10-2017 03:23PM

ELM327 wrote: »

Can we make an announcement at the local mass, if it's the locals doing it perhaps they wouldnt want to be announced publicly.

If they jump the lights they may be going to their own funeral mass, but if they all do it...

ELM327 · 05-10-2017 03:25PM

What if both sides do it?
EG one light breaker on each end of the junction, bisecting each other (oooh eerrr).
They will crash and they'll have no one else to blame but themselves.

I voted yes in the poll above, as it is a victimless crime only if the road is truly empty.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1 · 05-10-2017 03:27PM

Hooks Golf Handicap wrote: »

Firstly, it's not Red Lights, it's the red light, singular.
Honestly, once you sit there for over a minute waiting for it to turn green the urge would corrupt the most honest of drivers.
You can see any oncoming clearly in all directions.

I'm not saying it's correct as it's obviously breaking the law.
Could be more a rural/urban debate this one

Absolutely nothing to do with urban/rural. I'm rural and we have a similar situation but we obey the lights and respect others doing so too.

dil999 · 05-10-2017 03:35PM

ELM327 wrote: »

What if both sides do it?
EG one light breaker on each end of the junction, bisecting each other (oooh eerrr).
They will crash and they'll have no one else to blame but themselves.

I voted yes in the poll above, as it is a victimless crime only if the road is truly empty.

Sounds like the sort of place where the person you hit is guaranteed to be your first cousin, so shouldn't be a problem:)

Hooks Golf Handicap · 05-10-2017 03:37PM

Elliot Grumpy Pocketbook wrote: »

Absolutely nothing to do with urban/rural. I'm rural and we have a similar situation but we obey the lights and respect others doing so too.

One could not countenance competing which such fine examples of the moral code as your good selves.

mickdw · 05-10-2017 03:39PM

Just get them turned off. Nothing as dangerous as people ignoring a red light. Some day, someone is going to come through rapidly through on green and kill one of the locals coming into the junction on red.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1 · 05-10-2017 03:40PM

Hooks Golf Handicap wrote: »

One could not countenance competing which such fine examples of the moral code as your good selves.

Your sarcasm becomes you.

James Bond Junior · 05-10-2017 03:45PM

dil999 wrote: »

Sounds like the sort of place where the person you hit is guaranteed to be your first cousin, so shouldn't be a problem:)

And your sibling!!

05-10-2017 03:53PM

I see absolutely no problem going through a red light when its safe to do so. There is one particularly pointless set of lights on my route home that I drive through on red almost every day otherwise I'd be sitting there waiting for ages for a green when it's clearly safe to proceed.

dil999 · 05-10-2017 04:10PM

Adriana Bewildered Neighbor wrote: »

I see absolutely no problem going through a red light when its safe to do so. There is one particularly pointless set of lights on my route home that I drive through on red almost every day otherwise I'd be sitting there waiting for ages for a green when it's clearly safe to proceed.

Its never safe to do so.

Breaking lights at empty crossroads = victimless crime, or is it?

Is it ever OK to skip lights if there's nobody around 231 votes

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