WELLINGTON Waterloo Quay Junction. Too much traffic for the light change interval

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › WELLINGTON Waterloo Quay Junction. Too much traffic for the light change interval

jimbob79

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Topic # 201436 18-Aug-2016 11:51

I created a simple video this morning about my frustration about the Wellington Waterloo Quay & Bunny Street Junction.

IMHO the time interval for allowing traffic to enter and exit the junction is just to short. I have seen too many drivers take the opportunity to enter the junction on a red light or being stuck in the junction because pedestrians are crossing as it has turned green for them, which then blocks the drivers being stuck in the middle of junction.

The timing phase just needs to be improved.

https://youtu.be/rvNSqWBHKwA

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Reply # 1613699 18-Aug-2016 12:12

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No, they just need to enforce the rules for those cars that are entering the intersection on a red light.

The short phasing is usually used to control traffic flows into roads so that people on the road have oppertunites to leave carparks etc. They dont run the lights just to clear queues out. By forming a queue people will go other ways and not clutter up those roads.

Richard rich.ms

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Reply # 1613702 18-Aug-2016 12:20

Traffic signal phasing is a complicated beast, some signals are simply based on time, but the majority in NZ set by induction loops in the pavement.

The problem you have shown is a right turn circuit, which has a presence loop at the front of the right turn bay. Once the first vehicle has left the rank a timer starts countdown to trigger the orange, the green time is extended if a second vehicle is detected crossing the loop. The green extension time per vehicle diminish up until the set maximum green time.

So if you want to game the system, drive as close as possible to the car in front if you want to get through the lights on green.

If there is an incompetent driver who takes too long to get started, the orange phase will be triggered quickly.

Sometimes the signals do go out of whack, report it to your local council.

Traffic lights are the ones that shine from above at night, traffic signals are the ones that show you when to stop at the intersection :-)

CJC

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Reply # 1613709 18-Aug-2016 12:30

Haven't used that intersection for a while, but the next one up (for Whitmore Street) used to make me rage! It only seemed to let 2, maybe 3 cars through at a time.

Then they went and moved the stop lines back from the induction loop, so cars weren't even tripping it. Had to ride my motorbike up and either wave them forward, or trigger it myself, while looking like an impatient prick.

Fixed it by riding a completely different route.

jimbob79

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Reply # 1613713 18-Aug-2016 12:47

Because I commute mostly by train I see a lot of near miss incidences where tourists dragging there suitcases who are coming out of the backpackers (Hotel Waterloo) and crossing the road to go to the train station only because on the opposite side pedestrians have advanced to cross but to wait in the middle of the road. I known to them they are walking across the road when they shouldn't.

I guess coming from the UK there is never a mix of pedestrians and vehicles moving at the same time. This does make road junctions slower but it is safer. I.e. there should never be a time you have to give way to pedestrians crossing. I've been nearly hit by taxi drivers because they where trying into nip into a gap in the flow of pedestrians waking. In fact, taxi drivers are one of the worst at this junction.

MikeB4

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Reply # 1613716 18-Aug-2016 12:50

I admit that if I am at the front of the queue at lights I will wait a short time after the green light due to idiots that run red lights. I have had a few close shaves in recent times. Red light runners are affecting traffic flow.

Mike
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tchart

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Reply # 1613717 18-Aug-2016 12:51

Same thing at the SH2 lights near Avalon (in the Hutt). The light change is too short to accommodate reasonable flow on SH2 (for those already on the motorway). It really needs those auckland style on ramp traffic signals for those entering the motorway but its complicated by the fact that there are people trying to cross SH2 to go north as well as another set of lights 50m further along.

But then again the whole traffic lights on a state highway is a whole can of worms.

Bung

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Reply # 1613737 18-Aug-2016 13:12

richms:

No, they just need to enforce the rules for those cars that are entering the intersection on a red light.

The short phasing is usually used to control traffic flows into roads so that people on the road have oppertunites to leave carparks etc. They dont run the lights just to clear queues out. By forming a queue people will go other ways and not clutter up those roads.

How far along the Quays do you propose sending the current right turning cars before they can go west? As CJC has said the next intersection is similar.

The worst conflict at this intersection is for traffic coming off the wharf. They have to wait for probably the longest pedestrian crossing in Wellington to clear before getting 2ms. The traffic turning right from Bunny St often mixes with campervans left stranded in the middle of the road.

MikeAqua

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Reply # 1613810 18-Aug-2016 16:12

Did that cyclist at the beginning of the video run a red light?

Mike

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Reply # 1613818 18-Aug-2016 16:22

1eStar:

If there is an incompetent driver who takes too long to get started, the orange phase will be triggered quickly.

This happens so often with a red signal and green arrow. People focus on the red circle, don't see the green arrow.

Mike

jimbob79

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Reply # 1613833 18-Aug-2016 16:45

MikeAqua:
Did that cyclist at the beginning of the video run a red light?

You are correct. I was Amber. I'll make amendments to the video later.

Geektastic

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Reply # 1613874 18-Aug-2016 17:24

MikeB4:

I admit that if I am at the front of the queue at lights I will wait a short time after the green light due to idiots that run red lights. I have had a few close shaves in recent times. Red light runners are affecting traffic flow.

Still not sure why we do not have red light cameras on all traffic lights now. With a $1000 fine for running reds.

MikeB4

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Reply # 1613892 18-Aug-2016 18:01

Geektastic:

MikeB4:

I admit that if I am at the front of the queue at lights I will wait a short time after the green light due to idiots that run red lights. I have had a few close shaves in recent times. Red light runners are affecting traffic flow.

Still not sure why we do not have red light cameras on all traffic lights now. With a $1000 fine for running reds.

Agreed

Mike
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stevenz

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Reply # 1613894 18-Aug-2016 18:07

I mentioned to the council a while back that the lights at the bottom of Boulcott St were routinely only staying green for 3(!) seconds, they sorted it out very quickly.

@KnightNZ

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Reply # 1613906 18-Aug-2016 18:46

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1eStar: Traffic lights are the ones that shine from above at night, traffic signals are the ones that show you when to stop at the intersection :-)

Street lights shine from above; "traffic lights" is a valid name for the type in this thread. Per the OED:

street light (also street lamp) noun
a light illuminating a road, typically mounted on a tall post.

traffic lights |ˈtrafɪklʌɪts| (also traffic light or traffic signal) plural noun
a set of automatically operated coloured lights, typically red, amber, and green, for controlling traffic at road junctions, pedestrian crossings, and roundabouts.

Fortunately there aren't any in my town so I don't need to worry about them very often! :)

sbiddle

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Reply # 1614250 19-Aug-2016 11:20

My biggest gripe is the disaster that is Caro Dr. This bypass should have always been a cut and cover underground road but because people were too dumb to do that it's just a huge parking lot at peak hour.

I turn right from Victoria St into Caro Dr to head onto the motorway each night. It'd a fairly common occurance for the phasing of lights on Caro drive to end up completely screwed up which then makes traffic worse.

Pretty often the lights at Caro Dr / Victoria St for traffic heading towards the Terrace Tunnel stay green while the lights at Caro Dr / Willis St turn red. This means the entire section of road between Victoria St and Willis St is full of cars, so when the lights at Victoria St to turn into Caro Dr turn green there is room for maybe 1-2 cars. Quite often 8-10 cars will drive through and park all over the place - so when the lights at Willis St and turn green the traffic is then held up at Caro Dr because of this.

Red light running at Victoria St / Caro Dr is also an every day occurance. They say there is a red light camera there, but when you see multiple cars every light cycle running it I wonder if it's actually sending out tickets. If it was it'd surely mean hundreds of tickets every day.

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