"Matty F" wrote in message
...
So, you are driving along at night and you reach traffic lights which
are red for you. Nobody else has been through the intersection for 10
minutes or more.
Why do traffic engineers make you wait at the red light for 10 or more
seconds before the green light for the cross road changes to orange?
I've spoken to a traffic light engineer and he has no good reason for
the delay, which can easily be set to 0 seconds. But they don't do
that, just because they have always had a delay. Are they stupid, or
is there a good reason for the delay?

AAIUI If the lights turn to green as you approach, they also turn red
against the cross traffic. If someone decides to jump the light that has
just changed red against them, the risk of collission is higher than if you
had been brought to a stop and need to accelerate away from the line..

Colin Bignell