(IL) Senate gives motorcyclists green light to run some red lights

Senate gives motorcyclists green light to run some red lights

Over the protests of the Illinois State Police, the Illinois Senate Wednesday approved a bill that would allow motorcyclists to run red lights when traffic sensors don’t sense motorcycles at intersections.

House Bill 2860 cleared the Senate on a 43-12 vote. It was returned to the Illinois House because the Senate revised it to exempt Chicago.

Todd Vandermyde, a lobbyist for A.B.A.T.E., a motorcyclist advocacy group, said those who ride motorcycles sometimes get stuck at a red light that is timed to change to green only when sensors implanted on the road sense a vehicle. Some motorcycles and bicycles weigh too little to trigger the sensors, he said.

The bill would allow a motorcyclist to run a red light after a “reasonable” amount of time has passed and the light has not changed. A motorcyclist would still have to yield to any oncoming traffic. Eleven other states have similar laws.


http://www.sj-r.com/top-stories/x1753808421/Senate-gives-motorcyclists-green-light-to-run-some-red-lights

They are endangering lives for a few seconds....

I used to work in hospitals, motorcycles were referred to as 'donor mobiles.' They are dangerous, even in the hands of competent drivers, but then add this to the mix; impatient lot, apparently.

The stupidity of state laws and state lawmakers knows no bounds. There are eleven states with similar laws? Unbelievable!

"...red light that is timed to change to green only when sensors implanted on the road sense a vehicle."

So, what's a biker supposed to do? Stay put at a deserted intersection for hours in the middle of the night until a car comes by and presses the trigger for them?

This simply makes it a stop sign situation when the signal controller fails. The bill "allow a motorcyclist to run a red light after a “reasonable” amount of time has passed and the light has not changed. A motorcyclist would still have to yield to any oncoming traffic."

Are any motorists in cars behind me at a light expected to "be patient" as well after the second or third signal fail?

Makes sense to me.

There are intersections that have sensors in the road, usually on a side street crossing a busier street. There are places or times of day when the light will *never* change until a car triggers the sensor. If you are on a motorcycle the only way you will get through the intersection is to go through the red light.

and I am well aware that some sensors are not calibrated to measure the weight of a motorcycle. I also know that some sensor plates don't trigger a car's weight (especially for a small car) if the car is not seated properly on the sensor plate. I've been stuck like that before.

However, I still feel that this law is reckless and endangers not only motorcyclists but other motorists. If you get stuck at a light,if possible, turn right, find a safe place to turn around, then turn right again. Better than becoming impatient, running the light, and hurting someone. Just one time someone is injured, is too many.

So we will disagree on this point. Perhaps motorcyclists should lobby for sensors to be calibrated to the weight of motorcycles.

It's not weight, it's the presence of metal within a sensor loop, motorcycles don't have enough metal to trigger the sensor sometimes, depending on how they are calibrated.

have been in a situation (usually late at night or early morning) where you were stuck at a traffic light that wouldn't turn green for you. What did you do?

Have you ever been at a malfunctioning signal in your car, so the light wouldn't turn? What did you do?

In either case, I'm betting you didn't sit there for an hour waiting for the light to change. I'm guessing you looked all directions, made sure there was no oncoming traffic, and proceeded through the intersection.

All this law does is allow motorcyclists in this situation only to exercise some good judgement and be able to be on their way without breaking the law. It is NOT license for anyone to ignore a red light and run it without stopping and looking.

A motorcycle is sitting at a light for a while, they are not going to pull out in front of someone. Just defies common sense.

If the rider is drunk or reckless he is not going to sit there and wait anyway - so this change has no effect on that kind of rider.

The number one cause of fatal motorcycle accidents is cars turning in front of the motorcycle because they failed to see it or misjudged its speed. The number two cause is single vehicle motorcycle accidents where the motorcycle runs off the road, usually after failing to negotiate a curve.
Most other accidents are the result of excessive speed or improper braking by inexperienced riders. This change will not impact any of these situations.

I've sat and sat waiting for a fucking car to show up..it triggers off of the amount of steel to disrupt a magnetic field between the wires laid in the concrete.

There is another solution, I got these for my buddy last year..Neodymium Magnets bolt a couple to the bottom of your bike and it helps a lot. Don't fuck around with them though. They will mess your shit up :)

When I'm stuck at a light with no visible traffic in any direction, I'm not going to sit through multiple lights hoping the signal controller will wake up.

Luckily, the law in this already state allows that - http://www.bmwbmw.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=4034#p51018

Oooooopsies. :crazy:

But if you stop and wait, and it's clear the light isn't changing (the "Walk" signal in the other direction never changes to "Don't Walk"), and proceed through with no cross-traffic, that isn't what I would consider classic running of a light. Infrastructure idea: Install more sensitive pressure plates that can be triggered by 150 pounds. Jobs, road improvements, and safer transit for lighter vehicles. What's not to love?

Makes no sense to wait in a left turn lane when no on-coming traffic is approaching.

A motorcyclist learns quickly to stop in the coil. Bikes with an insufficient amount of iron for the system to sense will sit indefinitely. Worse, since they occupy the coil, it can't detect the magnetic signature of the car which pulls up behind the bike. So EVERYONE sits indefinitely, until the angry car operator rams the bike out of the way.

It's a reasonable law.

Any motorcycle operator which puts the law above his or her own safety is a statistic. If you're stuck in one of these lights, you go at the first safe opportunity whether the law allows you to or not.

Which can have its own issues, but generally won't miss a bike.

nothing will be perfect but still, better than running a red light.

I was told it was a weight sensor plate, obviously by someone who didn't know...

for about fifteen minutes. Never had the slightest inkling that it would never change because I was riding a motorcycle. There are devices that you can attach to your motorcycle to trip the sensors.

here's one:

http://www.cruisercustomizing.com/detail.cfm?Category_ID=53&manufacturer_ID=262&product_ID=14237&sblid_name=Green_Light_Stuff_Green_Light_Trigger_HP__High_Power_

Apparently you can also use some powerful magnets attached to your shoes if riding a bicycle--

http://www.instructables.com/id/Traffic-Light-Trigger-for-your-Bike/

high powered magnets to the bottom of his bike so that it would trigger these lights.

It was in the early hours of the morning and there were no other cars anywhere close to the intersection.

Every light that has a sensor should also have a timer, so that even if your vehicle doesn't trip the sensor the light will eventually change.

Installing a light that changes ONLY when a vehicle is present is downright stupid.

In my neighborhood, there is a residential street that feeds a more major arterial road. Most of the time, traffic on the residential street is rare, while the major road is constantly busy. It would be silly to be constantly and needlessly stopping traffic on that road when there is nobody that needs the signal. During the morning and late afternoon hours (commuting time), the residential street gets busy for an hour or so, and then those folks get a signal so they can get in and out of their neighborhood.

Win win for everyone.

every couple of minutes just snarls traffic. The solution is to get better sensors. They do exist and they aren't expensive. Most jurisdictions are replacing the older ones. In most major metro areas this is no longer a problem. But where it is this change in the law is a common sense solution.