At first glance, traffic lights are all very simple, and we all know them from childhood. Red - stop, yellow - get ready, green - go. This is a very simple rule. In this article, we'll take a deeper look at this rule within the .
Let's find all the pitfalls hidden in the traffic lights. The most interesting will be the signals that are in the additional section of the traffic light and what signals can be in this section. We will consider chapter 6 of the Rules traffic in terms of regulating traffic through the intersection with traffic signals.
6.1. Traffic lights use green, yellow, red and white-lunar light signals.
Depending on the purpose, traffic light signals can be round, in the form of an arrow (arrows), a silhouette of a pedestrian or a bicycle, and X-shaped.
Traffic lights with round signals may have one or two additional sections with signals in the form of a green arrow (arrows), which are located at the level of the green round signal.
Traffic signals of white-moon color, in the form of a silhouette of a pedestrian or a bicycle and X-shaped, we will not consider in this article.
6.2. Round traffic lights have the following meanings:
- Green signal allows movement;
- A green flashing signal allows movement and informs that its time is running out and a prohibition signal will soon be turned on (digital displays can be used to inform drivers about the time in seconds remaining until the end of the green signal);
- The yellow signal prohibits movement, except for the cases provided for in paragraph 6.14 of the Rules, and warns of the upcoming change of signals;
- A yellow flashing signal allows movement and informs about the presence of an unregulated intersection or pedestrian crossing, warns of danger;
- A red signal, including flashing, prohibits movement.
The combination of red and yellow signals prohibits movement and informs about the upcoming green signal.
This paragraph of the SDA describes round traffic lights. The most common traffic light, which is most often found on the roads.
6.3. Traffic light signals made in the form of arrows of red, yellow and green colors have the same meaning as round signals of the corresponding color, but their effect extends only to the direction (directions) indicated by the arrows. At the same time, the arrow that allows a left turn also allows a U-turn, unless this is prohibited by the corresponding road sign.
The green arrow in the additional section has the same meaning. The switched off signal of the additional section means the prohibition of movement in the direction regulated by this section.
The first thing you should pay attention to is that the signals are made in the form of arrows, i.e. the arrow is the signal. The signal is not round. Traffic signals with a contour arrow do not fit this definition, and clause 6.3 of the SDA is not applicable to them.
The second important point, traffic light signals made in the form of arrows regulate only indicated directions. For example, if the red arrow to the right is on, then movement is prohibited only to the right, movement straight ahead, turning left and turning around are not regulated by this signal.
Similarly with the green arrow signal, but only on condition that the arrow is in the main section of the traffic light. To determine, for example, at night, whether this is the main section of the traffic light or the additional one is very simple - if the section is additional, then some signal must be on in the main section of the traffic light, if there are no other signals besides the arrow, then this means that the arrow is in the main sections.
6.4. If a black contour arrow (arrows) is applied to the main green signal of the traffic light, then it informs drivers about the presence of an additional section of the traffic light and indicates other permitted directions of movement than the signal of the additional section.
This paragraph describes the purpose of the outline arrow of a traffic light signal. We see that the contour arrow can only be applied in the main section, and only on the green traffic light, and unlike the signal in the form of an arrow, the contour arrow allows movement only in the indicated directions. Movement in other directions is prohibited.
On this we could finish our material, if not for one very common situation in practice. We often come across a traffic light with such a signal:
Before us is a traffic light with an additional section and a round signal. It would seem that, according to paragraph 6.3, it is forbidden to move in the direction regulated by this section.
But let's take a look:
- According to clause 6.2, a round green signal allows movement in all directions, clause 6.3 regulates traffic lights made in the form of arrows, in this case clause 6.3 is not applicable.
- The additional section may not be visible at night, and traffic signals may not have different meanings depending on the time of day.
- We do not know the direction regulated by the additional section, we only know that it is “different” from the signal in the main section, and in the main section we have a green signal that allows movement in all directions,
- An additional section may not contain a traffic light at all, but can be used, for example, for a timer.
Thus, at this traffic light signal, according to clause 6.2, movement is allowed in all directions, unless otherwise prohibited by signs or markings.
Answer of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Let's summarize briefly:
- The round traffic light signal extends to all directions,
- The traffic light signal made in the form of an arrow in the main section applies only to the indicated direction and does not regulate traffic in other directions,
- The traffic light signal made in the form of an arrow in the additional section applies only to the indicated direction and prohibits movement in other directions,
- A round traffic light signal on which a contour arrow is applied applies only to the indicated direction and prohibits movement in other directions.
And this is how the TV program “Main Road” on NTV sees the situation.
Road to you without obstacles!
05.08.2015 03.12.2015 by papar@zzi
As you know, you can only cross the road in the places provided for this and only at the green traffic light. But traffic lights appeared at our intersections not so long ago, before traffic controllers were involved in coordinating traffic. Who owns the palm? Today, on the Birthday of the Traffic Light, we will deal with this issue.
1. Inventors of the traffic light
The first person to think of installing a traffic light at a crossroads to regulate traffic was John Peak Knight, a Londoner and specialist in railway semaphores. The first traffic light designed by him was installed in the British capital on December 10, 1868 near the Houses of Parliament.
Switching signals was carried out manually using two semaphore arrows. In a horizontal position, they signaled "stop", and lowered at an angle of 45 ° - movement with caution. So that at night it was possible to identify the signal given by the arrows, a rotating gas lamp was used, which shone red or green.
In 1910, Ernst Sirrin of Chicago developed and patented the world's first automatic traffic light switching system. His traffic lights had two inscriptions Stop and Proceed without illumination.
Just a couple of years later, in 1912, a resident of Salt Lake City, Utah, whose name was Lester Wire, created the world's first electric traffic light, with two round signal lights of red and green. For unknown reasons, Vayr did not patent his invention.
The next name in traffic light history is James Hogue. On August 5, 1914, the American Traffic Light Company installed four Hog-designed electric traffic lights at the intersection of 105th Street and Euclid Avenue in Cleveland.
The traffic lights were equipped with two light signals - red and green, and when switching they gave a sound signal. The whole system was controlled by a policeman who sat in a specially equipped glass box at the crossroads.
Six years later - in 1920 - traffic lights were installed in Detroit and New York, on which a yellow signal appeared. The people who developed them did not know each other: William Potts from Detroit and John F. Harris from New York.
Similar traffic lights were installed in 1922 in Paris at the intersection of Rivoli Street and Sevastopol Boulevard, as well as in Hamburg at Stephansplatz Square. In 1927, the same traffic lights appeared in Wolverhampton, England.
Often, the American inventor Garrett Morgan is often mentioned as the first inventor, who in 1923 received a patent for a traffic light of an original design. The first countdown traffic lights appeared in France in 1998.
Concerning Soviet Union, the first traffic lights were installed here in the early 1930s. First, the traffic light appeared at the intersection of avenues on October 25 and the Volodarsky city of Leningrad (modern Nevsky and Liteiny avenues in St. Petersburg) on January 15, 1930. In Moscow, the first traffic light began work on December 30 of the same year at the corner of Petrovka and Kuznetsky Most.
2. Types of traffic lights
The most widely used street and road traffic lights. Among them, automobile and traffic lights for pedestrians stand out - these varieties are most often found on the roads of the whole world.
Automobile traffic lights. As a rule, there are traffic lights with round signals of three generally accepted colors: red, yellow and green. The order of colors is strictly regulated. If the signals are arranged vertically, then red is always on top, and green is on the bottom. If the traffic light is horizontal, then the red signal will be located on the left, and the green one on the right. Additional sections with arrows are often hung on car traffic lights.
A yellow signal almost everywhere means this: it is allowed to pass the stop line, but it is necessary to slow down when entering a section protected by a traffic light, ready for the traffic light to switch to red. This signal can also be orange.
Traffic lights for pedestrians installed in the immediate vicinity of the established transitions. There are usually only two signals on them - forbidding and allowing. Their appearance may vary. The most common signals are in the form of a silhouette of a person - standing or walking.
In some countries, in the USA for example, the red signal is made in the form of a raised palm. Sometimes, instead of men and palms, the inscriptions "Go" and "Do not go" are used. In Oslo, two standing red human figures are used as a traffic signal forbidding pedestrians.
Why such difficulties? This is done for the convenience of people with poor eyesight, as well as for those who have difficulty with color discrimination (color blindness). In addition, traffic lights different countries equipped with an audible signal.
3. Design
What are traffic lights made of? There are several possible designs of traffic lights. The first option is traffic lights with incandescent or halogen lamps. Their design includes:
- Lamp
- Reflector
- light filter
- Fresnel lens
- Visor.
- Matrix of LEDs
- Anti-vandal glass
- Visor.
In Russia there is a monument to a traffic light.
It was installed in Novosibirsk in 2006.
Why did red, yellow and green become the colors of traffic lights around the world? Why didn't you choose any other colors? In fact, there are two reasons that explain this choice.
Explanation number one is related to physics, the second reason is directly related to psychology and the possibilities of human perception of colors.
According to experts, red is the main danger signal for many animals. For road users, red also signals a dangerous situation on the road - the possibility of running over a pedestrian or getting into an accident in case of disobedience to this traffic light signal. Red, falling into the field of view, should excite the nerve centers of both drivers and pedestrians and become for them a symbol of a nearby danger.
It is also worth mentioning that it is this spectrum of colors - red, yellow and green - that is always perfectly perceived by the human eye. It's connected with physical factors, in particular with the wavelength. 
A person should easily perceive red and green signals, identifying them as allowing and forbidding, this is how it happens.
By the way, even a color-blind person, who is not able to distinguish between red and green, is able to identify them by different shades of gray. 
It should also be mentioned that our eyes react differently to light of different wavelengths, reacting with different sensitivity - more or less. The choice of green as an enabling signal is also not accidental. Green is as close as possible to the level of the most perceived part of the spectrum. That is, a person is able to see the green color from the greatest distance. 
Today it is very difficult to imagine traffic rules without the main tool for streamlining traffic, which is a traffic light. It is designed to adjust and facilitate both vehicular and pedestrian traffic. There are different traffic light signals, depending on their functions. Although they are similar to each other, they have certain nuances that must be remembered.
Traffic light: definition
A traffic light is an optical signaling device that is designed to regulate the movement of cars, bicycles and other vehicles, as well as pedestrians. It is used in all world states without exception.
Interesting! Previously, there was no green light in traffic lights in Japan. It was replaced by blue. But scientists have proven that green is more acceptable to human eyes.
Types of traffic lights
The most common are three-color traffic lights with round signals: red, yellow and green. Traffic rules in some countries require the use of orange traffic lights instead of yellow ones. Signals can be placed both vertically and horizontally. If no other special traffic lights or additional sections are provided, then they regulate the movement of all types of transport, as well as pedestrians. Next, we will look at various types of traffic lights, from everyday to special ones.
Classic three-section traffic light
Such a traffic light has, as a rule, three colors, arranged in order: red, yellow, green - from top to bottom or from left to right. Such traffic lights are installed at intersections. They are designed for the simultaneous passage of all types of transport in all directions permitted by traffic rules. They are also installed at regulated pedestrian crossings located between intersections. It is allowed to install such a traffic light at a railway crossing in settlements, at the intersection of the road with tram tracks, in front of the bike path and the carriageway. They can also be seen where the roadway narrows to allow oncoming traffic to pass alternately.
Interesting fact!The first three-section traffic light was installed in Detroit in 1920.
two-section
Traffic lights with two sections are used to regulate the flow of traffic in the territories of industrial enterprises and organizations, as well as during the narrowing of the roadway to organize a single-lane reverse traffic flow.
Single section traffic light with yellow light
Such a one-color traffic light is found at unregulated intersections and pedestrian crossings.
Traffic lights with additional section
Traffic lights can also be equipped with additional sectional sections with arrows or arrow contours. They regulate the movement of traffic in one direction or another. Such traffic lights work, according to the traffic rules, as follows: the contours of the arrows on all signals of a conventional three-color traffic light mean that its action extends only in one specified direction.
An additional section of a traffic light with a green arrow on a black background allows traffic according to the traffic rules, but does not provide advantages during the siding. Sometimes you can find an always burning green signal, which is made in the form of a plate with a solid green arrow. This means according to the traffic rules that the turn is allowed, despite the prohibitory traffic lights.
Such traffic lights are installed in those places where it is necessary to organize conflict-free traffic at intersections. If one of these traffic lights turns green, then when crossing the intersection, you can not give way. To avoid emergencies, personal traffic lights are placed above each lane, which show the direction of movement that is allowed from a particular lane.
Reversible traffic lights
Reversing traffic lights are used to regulate traffic along the lanes of the carriageway. These are dedicated band control knobs. At such traffic lights, from two to three signals can be placed: a red signal in the form of the letter "X" prohibits movement in a specific lane. The green arrow, which is directed down, on the contrary, allows movement. The yellow diagonal arrow indicates that the lane mode has been changed and indicates in which direction you need to leave it.
Traffic lights to control traffic across a pedestrian crossing
Typically, such traffic lights have only two types of signals: The first one allows, the second one forbids. As a rule, they correspond to green and red colors. The signals themselves can be of different shapes. Often they are depicted as a stylized silhouette of a person: standing red and walking green. For example, in America, the prohibition signal is made in the form of a red raised palm, meaning "stop." Sometimes inscriptions are used: red “stop” and green “walk”. In other countries, respectively, in other languages.
Traffic lights with automatic switching are installed on highways with busy traffic. But there are times when you can switch the traffic light by pressing a special button, which allows you to cross the road for a certain time. Modern traffic lights for convenience are equipped with a digital countdown display. For blind people, sound devices are mounted in traffic lights.
To regulate the movement of trams
A traffic light for a tram, as a rule, is placed in front of areas with limited visibility, long ascents and descents, at a tram depot and in front of arrows. There are two types of traffic lights for the tram: green and red. They are installed either to the right of the tracks, or hung in the center above the contact wire. Basically, such traffic lights notify tram drivers about whether the path is busy further or not. They do not regulate the movement of other vehicles and are purely individual. Their work is built automatically.
Traffic signals: traffic rules
Round lights mean the following: a static green signal allows the movement of vehicles or pedestrians, and a flashing green traffic light means that a prohibition signal will light up soon, but traffic is still allowed.
Interesting fact!In general, residents of large cities spend about six months of their lives waiting for a traffic signal to pass.
What does a yellow traffic light mean? It warns that the prohibiting signal will be replaced by an enabling one or vice versa, and for the duration of its action prohibits movement. A flashing yellow traffic light means that the section of the road on which this traffic light is located is not regulated. If it is located at an intersection and operates in this mode, then the intersection is unregulated. Drivers are guided by those articles of the traffic rules, which stipulate the passage of unregulated intersections. A static and flashing red signal prohibits movement in any direction.
Red and yellow traffic lights burning at the same time indicate that it is forbidden to move further, and the green light will soon turn on. The white-moon signal of the traffic light informs that the alarm is working, and you can continue driving. Such traffic lights are installed on tram and railway tracks.
Traffic lights that look like arrows mean the following: red, yellow and green arrows mean the same as round signals, only they act in a certain direction. An arrow that points to the left also allows a U-turn, unless this is prohibited by the corresponding traffic sign next in priority.
The green arrow of the additional section has a similar meaning. If this signal is off, or the red outline is on, then movement in this direction is prohibited. If the main green signal has a black outline arrow, then this means that there are other directions of movement than those indicated by the additional section.
What is more important: a sign, a traffic light or a marking?
The rules of the road imply the following priority: the main one is the traffic controller, then the traffic light, then the sign and then the markings. The signals of the traffic controller have priority over traffic lights and traffic signs. They are mandatory. All traffic signals, except for flashing yellow, are more significant than road signs. All road users are obliged to follow the instructions of the traffic controller, even if they contradict traffic lights, signs and markings.
The capital of Germany has a traffic light with thirteen signals. It is not so easy to understand his testimony right away.
Why are the colors of the traffic lights the way they are? and got the best answer
Answer from Natalya Buldina (Mortisss)[guru]
Source: => Vita pulchra et necessaria. (lat.)
Answer from Iy[guru]
In some countries, instead of yellow, Orange color. Signals can be arranged both vertically (with the red signal always on the top and the green signal on the bottom) and horizontally (with the red signal always on the left and the green signal on the right) . In the absence of other, special traffic lights, they regulate the movement of all types of vehicles and pedestrians. Sometimes traffic lights are supplemented with a special countdown display, which shows how long the signal will be on. Most often, the countdown board is made for a green traffic light, but in some cases, the board also displays the remaining time of the red signal.
Almost everywhere, a red traffic light signal prohibits movement, a yellow one prohibits leaving the area protected by a traffic light, but allows the completion of its passage, and a green one allows movement. It is common, but not universal, to use a combination of red and yellow signals to indicate the upcoming green signal. Sometimes a green signal turns on immediately after a red one without an intermediate yellow, but not vice versa. The details of the use of signals differ depending on the traffic regulations adopted in a particular country.
There are two sections of traffic lights - red and green. Such traffic lights are usually installed at points where cars are allowed to pass on an individual basis, for example, at border crossings, at the entrance or exit from a parking lot, a protected area, etc.
Flashing signals may also be given, the meaning of which depends on local legislation. In Russia and in many European countries, a flashing green signal indicates an upcoming switch to yellow. Cars approaching a traffic light with a flashing green signal can take timely braking measures to avoid entering the intersection guarded by the traffic light or crossing the prohibitory signal. A flashing yellow signal requires you to slow down to pass an intersection or pedestrian crossing as unregulated (for example, at night, when regulation is not required due to low traffic) . Sometimes special traffic lights are used for these purposes, consisting of one flashing or two alternately flashing yellow sections.
Answer from Anastasia churilova[newbie]
Three colors are used in the light signaling of road transport - red, yellow and green.
For a person from time immemorial, it has developed that the color red is a signal of danger, alarm. It was fire that was always such a sign for him. Red has become a universally recognized hazard warning signal. And vice versa, the green signal has always been personified with safety, calmness, so it was natural to use it as a permissive traffic light signal.
Red rays have the longest wavelength and propagate with the least loss. Therefore, the red color is visible the farthest. The red signal is more visible and it is he who is accepted as a danger signal. This is especially important, for example, in low visibility conditions. For example, fog absorbs blue and green rays, so green in fog can be perceived as yellow, and yellow as red. If a driver in fog mistook yellow for red, and green for yellow, then such errors will not create a danger to traffic.
In the beginning, traffic lights had a green signal at the top, but then it was agreed that the red signal was more important for drivers and pedestrians and therefore it should be more visible. It is no coincidence that recently they even began to make lenses for this signal larger than the others.