Motorcycles get a pass at red lights.

[Cleaner]

Its about time... More states need to enact this....

By Ron Barnett, USA TODAY

Sometimes, red means go.

Motorcyclists in a growing number of states are being allowed to go through red lights when sensors aren't able to detect they are there.

In May, South Carolina became the seventh state to give motorcyclists license to proceed with caution after stopping when the device that causes the light to change from red to green doesn't activate, according to Imre Szauter, government affairs manager for the American Motorcyclist Association.

North Carolina passed a similar law in 2007. Wisconsin (2006), Idaho (2006) Arkansas (2005), Tennessee (2003) and Minnesota (2002), all have passed laws the past six years, Szauter said. Bills have been introduced for the same purpose in Georgia, Missouri and Oklahoma, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures and the legislative websites for those states.

The Federal Highway Administration says such laws raise safety concerns, but biker groups that have lobbied for the change say they are common sense.

FIND MORE STORIES IN: California | Oklahoma | Minnesota | Tennessee | Georgia | South Carolina | Oregon | Missouri | Arkansas | Idaho | Richardson | National Conference of State Legislatures | Federal Highway Administration | Sumter | Greenville News | Motorcyclist Association | Bikers Aimed Toward Education | Republican Gov. Mark Sanford

"We want to emphasize that the riders do this with safety and caution in mind," Szauter said. "If they truly are trapped at a light, this gives them an opportunity to safely proceed through that signal, because otherwise they don't really have much of a choice."

Doug Hecox, a spokesman for the Federal Highway Administration, said the states should try to find a technical solution to the problem.

"We don't necessarily think that empowering motorists to make up their own rules of the road is the safest or best approach," he said.

The traffic lights in question are controlled by devices buried under the road that operate similar to metal detectors, according to Hecox. Their sensitivity can be set to detect motorcycles, but the proper balance is difficult to adjust, he said.

California has chosen a technological solution. A law adopted last year requires that when new traffic-activated signals are installed, they be capable of detecting motorcycles and bicycles.

Motorcyclist Splatt Ratt of Palm Springs, Calif., a member of the board of directors of a motorcyclists advocacy group called American Bikers Aimed Toward Education, said that's not good enough. Replacing all the ineffective traffic-detection devices could take years, he said.

"The gist of the whole problem is I live in the stop-light capital of the world," he said.

Reb Richardson, a motorcyclist from Sumter, S.C., said he pushed his state's Legislature for three years to get the bill passed that Republican Gov. Mark Sanford signed last month. Richardson's efforts grew out of frustration over a traffic light at the intersection near his home.

"That light would never change," he said. "There's just not enough metal in motorcycles to detect them."

Some motorcyclists try to deal with the problem by motioning for a car behind them to pull forward to trip the signal, Richardson said. This puts the biker in danger, forcing the motorcyclist to move too far into the intersection, he said.

Scott Kauffman of Portland, Ore., says he has a solution. He has developed a magnetic device he calls the Green Light Trigger that straps onto the motorcycle and causes the traffic light to think a car is there, he said.

He's not worried about the changes in state law putting his company, Green Light, out of business. It's still better than running red lights, he said.

"You may not need it legally, but they need it from a safety standpoint," he said.

Barnett reports for The Greenville News in South Carolina

(http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-06-10-red-light-laws_N.htm)

[coolblue]

Slightly off topic rant:

Over the weekend we went to Creekside in Gahanna. We went to park in the new garage which is underground down a steep ramp. We pull up to the gate and the attendant comes out and tells us we can't park in the garage because we can't trigger the sensor. I asked him what he wanted us to do, we had to somehow turn around. He said drive around the gate and do a u-turn and drive back around the gate on the other side.

I was pissed, I asked why there were no signs saying no bikes. He said there is on the gate. But to get to the gate you have to enter the garage. And if they let you around the gate to turn around and leave, why not just let us park.

Back on topic:

I have had this happen to me while driving and I have wondered what to do. This would be interesting but will people abuse this privilege because they will not want to sit at a light.

[Dweezel]

heh, I've been doing that for quite some time now.

[fusion]

I've had to do this on very rare occasion, but I can imagine it gets abused.

[Cleaner]

I've had to do this on very rare occasion, but I can imagine it gets abused.

Well, if they treat it like a stop sign I don't see it getting abused that much. They could also make it an affirmative defense. That means that you could/would be charged with the offense but be able to get out of being found guilty because you were at this type of light.

[magley64]

hell, nobody cares about red lights anyway, cagers included...

[zerocrash]

heh, I've been doing that for quite some time now.

Ditto

[gixxie750]

there are 2 lights on my way home after work at nite like this! Its soooo annoying! I have never run them because theres always a cop behind me. I have to signal them to get close to me and they do,but its a little confusing for them.

[kawi kid]

hell, nobody cares about red lights anyway, cagers included...

fact

[Harb67]

I've run into this problem on several occasions. I dunno if it's in my head or if I've actually found a way to trigger the lights in my area more effectively, but recently I've begun blipping the throttle several times while sitting directly over the sensor line. Seems to get the lights to change faster. Maybe they just changed the sensitivity of the sensors in my area while I was down on campus though.

[2insanezx10r]

Roll the throttle back and run the fucker..Look both ways though.

[DangBruhY]

Just remember that it's not legal to do that here in Ohio.

Also, I think cutting traffic would be MUCH better.

If you are still worried about the light changing, there are magnets you can get just for that purpose.

http://www.ascycles.com/detail.aspx?ID=2577

http://scientificsonline.com/search.asp?t=ss&ss=Neodymium&bhcd2=1213258115

[F4iBunny]

There's a couple lights like this that I run into when I come home from work at 3 or 5am. I have gone through them a couple times. Other times I just detour a bit to a light that I know will change automatically anyway. It is pretty annoying though! I wonder if a cop would give me a ticket when I'm the only one anywhere near an intersection and I've sat there for 10 minutes with no light change?

[magley64]

well, if the red is at a 4 way intersection, turn right, pull a U turn, turn right...problem solved...

[dustinsn3485]

There's a couple lights like this that I run into when I come home from work at 3 or 5am. I have gone through them a couple times. Other times I just detour a bit to a light that I know will change automatically anyway. It is pretty annoying though! I wonder if a cop would give me a ticket when I'm the only one anywhere near an intersection and I've sat there for 10 minutes with no light change?

I'd never wait 10 minutes for a light to change. 3 at most and I roll it. Long as I'm the only person at the light of course

well, if the red is at a 4 way intersection, turn right, pull a U turn, turn right...problem solved...

Done that before!

-------------

People roll stop signs without coming to a complete stop all the time, why should a light be any different, they mean the same thing

[progrmr]

Don't buy that green light tripper - get 2 of these:

http://www.magnet4sale.com/product.php?productid=16527&cat=309&page=3

affix to the bottom of the bike using 3M Exterior mounting tape. Of course, I like to do things myself instead of buying the canned solution. Probably you will only save a few bucks doing it this way.

[sh0tzy]

Has anyone seen this article:http://rsinventionlab.com/archives/126 ? I have one light on my way to work that I have to go through because it won't change for me. I think I will try this project and report back!

[psyco1]

Those magnets don't do any more than blocks of metal of the same mass, the loop can't tell the difference between one or the other.

I've had some luck putting the kickstand down until it touches, it works on the ones with the sensitivity set just out of reach normally. On the really insensitive ones I run.

[John]

i run lights all the time because of this. just treat it like a stop sign.

[Chrisoh]

Also I have gotten lights to change by shutting the bike off and starting it back up. Sometimes the extra current the starter puts out will trigger it.

I have one if I screw up and go that way at night when very little traffic uses it I get stuck. I have turned right and turned around to get by it.

[NinjaNick]

I've gotten off before and walked over to the button on the pole and pushed it.

I run red lights if I'm stuck with nobody else around. I'm not waiting for nothing.

[RC51 John]

Magnets out of an old hard drive work also.

[kinkinhood]

I just run them. I figure eventually I'll get pulled over and it'll go the court and the charge will get dropped, or I'll get off with just a warning.