To stop when traffic lights are amber?

[Birdtablegreen]

Picture this: Driving along

@username678889 yes on the occasion it has been dangerous to stop on amber and I’ve gone through, I see the same, loads of cars following when it clearly is red!

@SmellbowSpaceBowl yes - there’s been plenty of times when I’ve thought ‘ah shit, missed the lights’ and had to wait a couple of minutes but usually when I am running late and that is my own fault

If I’m far enough away from an amber light obviously I stop. If I’m right at the lights and the traffic is flowing and the light turns to amber, especially if someone is close behind me I will go through as abruptly stopping would probably mean the car behind me would end up rear ending me.

@WowOoo oh god don’t even get me started on the pressure to overtake cyclists!!!! I very much treat them like cars (as you should) and refuse to nearly hit them by overtaking them with oncoming traffic but sadly people don’t think the same and I just dread whenever I see one now!!

You definitely stop for amber. I didn't and got a ticket
Not consistently applied unfortunately. I stopped at an amber and the man in the car behind me pulled past, stopped next to me, shouted in my face that I was a cunt and sped off.
The policemen on the other side of the road laughed at me.

This happens where I live in queues of static traffic at lights, as many cars as possible go through on amber and then one or two more will push their luck as it turns red. If I’m in the traffic and we’re filing through one at a time at 5/10 mph the I would stop for an Amber. If it’s actually flowing traffic at speed then I go through on amber unless I was far enough away to safely stop.

It’s when you go through on amber thinking that was a bit close and then look in the rear view mirror at the cars who followed you. My friend always slows at traffic lights and always complains that she is unlucky with red lights and complains everyone is really aggressive driving now. My stopping on amber is dependant on how harsh I would need to brake.

Exactly Property, it’s all well and good saying you MUST stop on amber but if you’ve got someone right up your arse you’re likely to have them go into should you slam on. You’ve just got to read the road and act accordingly.

This my algorithm. When I stop, I usually brake relatively slowly so as to give the person behind me warning I'm stopping, so he doesn't run into me.

When the light turns amber, I make an instantaneous calculation whether that normal stopping procedure will stop me before the line. If it won't, I don't brake at all, I go through the light on amber.

If I were to decide not to stop, and the light turned red before I crossed the line, that would mean I was going too fast.

(The above algorithm works in the UK, I discovered recently it doesn't work in South Africa, where the amber light phase is so short that you have to choose between emergency braking and going through on red.)

The people that always stop or never stop are the ones that are not doing it correctly. Amber is prepare to stop. One of these procedures is checking cars behind before making the decision.

The amber light it there for a reason. If you’re far away enough to stop sensibly, stop. If your going to have to break quite suddenly, don’t - that’s very dangerous. I don’t know why the driver behind you got angry - even if you had gone through, they would have definitely had to stop (there definitely shouldn’t be two cars driving through an amber light.)

Amber means to prepare to stop.
Wrong. Amber Meeks stop unlessp to do so would cause an accident.

My company sent me on an Institute of Advanced Motorists course many years ago but I doubt the advice has changed

We were told that when you were approaching a traffic light that was green, you should be making a conscious and continuous assessment of which you should do if it changed to Amber: up to a certain point, that would that you have time to stop safely and smoothly; after a certain point it would be to accelerate through the junction. Part of that decision making process includes being aware of the cars behind you and how close they are.

And yes, we were told "accelerate". By that the instructor didn't mean "boy racer" acceleration, he meant a gentle increase to get through the junction more quickly, as it is a "danger zone" so you should minimise the time that you are in it.

In the same way, you accelerate to overtake - to minimise the time that you are in the danger zone.

The key thing I learnt from that course (which was a conurbation of class/theory learning and practical sessions out on open roads: 3 of us in the car with the instructor, taking it in turns to drive so also getting the chance to observe his comments about each other's driving) was to drive mindfully - to make conscious decisions rather than to drive on auto-pilot. And to accelerate from a particular point through corners as the car is more stable if you do that (but you need to be going at the right speed before the corner to do that)

If it's amber you should stop IF IT'S SAFE TO DO SO. That means not slamming on your brakes so that the person behind runs into you. And you definitely don't need to be dawdling on green just in case it turns to amber. Different lights are on different lengths of cycle. If it's green, you should keep driving as normal; if it's amber, you stop if you safely can but keep driving if you need to.

Amber only means stop if it's safe.

It isn't always safe to stop - slamming on your brakes unexpectedly is dangerous - much safer to just continue through the lights, especially if you have someone sat up your backside!

OP How did you know the car behind was angry?

I have pretty much the same approach to amber lights as you BTW.

Don't know why the car behind you was pissed off at you. If it was marginal for you then they would certainly have been going through on red.

And if it was because they had to stop suddenly they were driving too fast and too close for the conditions.

Don't be an amber gambler!

You did right op. I'd not give it another thought.

@Pinkblueberry as he was obviously the sort of driver who sees amber as a ‘go faster’ and is probably one of those ones always going through just as it goes red!

@sleepyhead they probably were going too fast - which is standard for that patch of road! Seems like I’m the only one going 30mph sometimes (unless it’s heavy traffic!)

@StCharlotte looked in the rear view mirror and they were making a sort of ‘for f* sake’ gesture

My driving instructor says if its amber before you get to the line then you stop and if it turns after you have crossed the line you keep going.

I thought everyone knew the rules - green - go, red - stop, Amber - speed up

Let the flaming begin.....

@Babdoc I failed my test doing that. The instructor said if you see the light has been green for some time then you anticipate it will change and never go through on amber unless you are over the line as it changes. You never speed up to get through the light as it may change and it will be harder to stop. I saw green kept going and sailed through on amber..automatic fail! Now i’ve been driving for 20 years it’s a judgement call.