Thread: Do some intersection lights sense flashing car lights?

My friend always flashes his bright lights at this slow turn signal light in my town whenever it's dark. He says that the intersection lights don't sense that you're there unless you flash your brights sometimes. I think he's a moron?

Is he right or am I the moron????

he is a moron, the lights are controlled by a sensors lined in the pavement, sometime if you look at the place where you stop at a red light you can see these lines in the spot where you stop, this is what triggers the light to change

wtf..that's new..he's a Moron not you definetly

Some Police & Firemen have the tools on-board to effect traffice lights. I think your friend is the moron.

yes it does work on some lights

It all depends on where you live.

They were quite common in California, for example, and I would often flash my lights in rapid succession to get them to change (great way to get a ticket). In Florida, however, the state never bought into the technology, so they're nowhere to be found.

The reason that flashing lights make them change is because they think an emergency vehicle is approaching. Sounds like a great idea, but too many people (like me) caught on and took advantage of it, so it's being quickly replaced by on-board transponders found within the emergency vehicle itself. Other states are switching to a more "intelligent" sensor that only sences high powered strobe lights that flash at a fixed frequency.

Depending on where you live, you may have noticed police, fire, and medical vehicles flashing bright, white lights over the last two years or so. That means you've got light sensors in your area, but flashing your regular headlights the way I once did won't work, anymore. Gone are the good old day of short-live red lights.

In the end, your friend was half right.

it's nice too see how many nice people answered this question..MOR..ON..S..THIS LATER...

He's the moron. The only sensors that intersection stop lights have an underneath the road and are weight sensors. Go ahead and tell him how dumb he is.

He is a moron. The intersections use sensors in the road to tell if a car is there or not.

moron!
most intersections have one of two different means of vehicle detection, metal detector or pressure pad in the ground under the pavement. that's why you see lines in the pavement at the stop area. others have headlight beam detectors but those are being replaced.