You Have Five Seconds

at

Ah here.

Anyone?

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38 thoughts on “You Have Five Seconds

          1. postmanpat

            I really don’t, “13 seconds is more than enough for a car to pass through too but they get a lot more time.”, sorry george, but that doesn’t make sense.

          2. ZeligIsJaded

            @postmanpat, I’ll bite

            Pedestrians crossing a road get 13 seconds, irrespective of age, ability or numbers.

            The green light for traffic remains green for far longer, irrespective of how many cars are passing.

            Some of us find this baffling.

            Very simple really

          3. postmanpat

            Cars are supposed to drive on roads, why should they be idling and polluting for longer than is needed for your average pedestrian to get across the road? waiting at a red light when everyone who is crossing has already crossed and now your just sitting there for no reason for 20 seconds longer with cars coming up and stopping tail backing behind you? How long should the green man last? 15 seconds ? 17 seconds? 30 seconds? 2 minutes? Should we measure the speed of the slowest OAP in Dun Laoghaire and adjust the light sequence accordingly? A short green man sequence means less tailbacks and more a likelihood of a period of time when no cars are on the road. During those periods people can cross without waiting for pedestrian lights. All that unnecessary stopping and starting is bad for emissions. Half the traffic lights in this country (pedestrian and traffic )should be removed, But then the right insiders wont get paid in this disgusting little corrupt country of ours. The drive from the Dublin suburbs to the Rosslare ferry will have more traffic light stops than all the traffic lights from Cherbourg France to Brindisi in the south of Italy. No, but go ahead ask for pedestrian lights sequences to be extended. The grey boomers (like grey square face in the photos) have done enough damage to the environment , what’s another few years of increased unnecessary pollution? Let the war babies take there sweet time crossing the road. bless ’em!

      1. Stephen

        The difference is cars have to queue and then go through one at a time so in order to facilitate multiple cars getting through you need longer, where as pedestrians you could have twenty cross more or less just as quick as one.
        That said comments further down indicate there is a 2 minute wait for the pedestrian light to change, which is too long. It should be nearer 10 seconds, assuming it hasn’t been pressed in the last minute or so, maybe minimum time of 1 minute between pedestrian lights.

    1. Cian

      13 seconds is enough time to leave the station, go down six steps, cross a wide foothpath AND cross the 3-lane road, at a reasonably sedate pace. There is literally a video of a man doing that.

      The road is 3-lanes (or about 10m wide). For an average man/woman that is 13/15 steps.

          1. postmanpat

            and it stays on a red light on the motorist side a few seconds longer as well. So add another 3 seconds to your shuffle across the road. Problems here: Zero.

    2. Rob_G

      If you are young-ish and able-bodied, sure. If you are older, or in a wheelchair, or trying to cross shepherd some kids while pushing a buggy, it could be a different story.

      1. millie vanilly strikes again

        +1 Rob

        This has happened to me at those exact lights with my Nana, who is no longer a sprightly young thing. I ignored the change of lights in favour of Nana getting safely across the road.

        1. Slightly Bemused

          And rightly so! There is even a question on this on the theory test. The rules of the road clearly state that if a pedestrian is still on the crossing you must wait – even if they are no longer in your lane, regardless of what the lights say. Green for a car only means go if it is safe to do so.

          Hope your Nana is doing well, millie :)

          1. millie vanilly strikes again

            Thank you dear Bemused! She is, of course, still berating us all for not wearing a coat in this awful weather and lamenting the common young wans who hang out outside her local Spar. So, top form, as ever.

  1. freddy8toes

    need to factor in the time from pressing the button to going green too.

    There’s lights near the shopping centre in Lucan that take a full 2 minutes to change to green from pressing the button.

  2. Marbe

    With all due respect, 13 seconds isn’t all that long if you have a very wonky hip and are using a walking-stick.

    1. postmanpat

      Once the pedestrian is on the road they have right of way anyway, motorists usually understand when a decrepit codger is struggling to finish the journey across the road. Its annoying when a car behind that cant see the old fart situation and beeps in frustration. Its happened to everyone who drives at some point. I usually just give the car behind me the middle finger and take my sweet time .

  3. Custo

    The one between Kilmainham jail and the Royal Hospital is that quick too. It goes orange when you’re not even half way accross. Doesn’t even give you time to navigate all the cars stopped in the middle of the junction who chanced the red light.

  4. theo kretschmar schuldorff

    The formula they use (in Dublin City anyway) for calculating the times is this:
    * Green man will stay lit for minimum 6 seconds. This is the invitation to START crossing the road. In some scenarios it can stay lit for longer, but it is still only an invitation to start crossing the road.
    * Amber man’s duration depends on the width of the road. Usually they take the width of the road in metres and divide by 1.2 (average walking speed in metres/ second). Outside Schools and Churches, its sometimes calculated for a slower walking speed.
    Anything not reflecting this formula is a fault and should probably be reported.

    The WAIT TIME between green men (where you’re left standing by the roadside like a tool – for max ~120 seconds) is way, way too long at most traffic lights in Dublin. This is the indication that they case less about pedestrians than cars.

    * * * It is this figure that you need to be getting excited about people!! * * *

      1. Daveb

        Pedestrian crossing at Parnell St in front of Chapters takes forever to go green- people just give up and have to wait till the traffic jam is long enough that traffic is stopped anyway. Dublin is definitely a car only city.

        1. Cian

          The quickest pedestrian is (was) the one on Kildare St at Moleswort St. It would immediately set the traffic lights to amber as soon as you pressed it.

          No waiting at pedestrian lights for the folks at Leinster house.

          1. Cian

            I haven’t been down there for about 5 years, and there have been major road changes around there with the Luas, so it may have changed by now.

            If anyone is in the area can you try it out and see if it is still fast?

          2. Mick

            It was apparently like that so the lads and ladies can get from Buswell’s back to LH when a division (voting) bell rings.

    1. Spaghetti Hoop

      Amber man is my hero.
      How many seconds for a chicken to get across? And more importantly, why?

  5. Daisy Chainsaw

    The daily death rate of Dun Laoghaireans continues to rise as pedestrians are ploughed down as the light goes green…

  6. Liam Deliverance

    Red coated man was late to the crossing, it was green before he started.

    And yes Orange means do not start to cross if you have not already started. People push this concept too far and end up in the middle of the road when the lights have returned to green for the road traffic. And yes, yes crossing pedestrians have right of way but they will not always be seen by the traffic who have started to proceed forwards, an unnecessary risk in my opinion. See Leeson St Bridge for peds and cyclists taking this to the max.

  7. Ringsend Incinerator

    That crossing is directly in front of DLR CC town hall – it’s not like local politicians don’t know. They don’t care. Of course, it’s only outsiders who use the crossing. In a constituency with three FG TDs everybody over the age of 65 has at least two 182-D SUVs.

    I do agree that if you are a cyclist, pedestrian, walker etc in Dun Laoghaire you’re just lost parking fine revenue. Appalling snobs.

  8. BobbyJ

    Put in a raised zebra crossing with fixed cameras, pedestrians are top of the Hierarchy of Users and should be given priority. The motorist can wait.

    1. postmanpat

      Go away with your making sense!!! The traffic light industry people in global transnational Siemans (SIE:GR)and contractors and sub-contractors and sub-sub contractors wont get paid. And they need to get paid. You got to show growth (consumption equals growth equals environmental damage ..thanks boomers!! ) . money money money!!! They’ve had an … understanding with successive Irish governments for decades!! The Torie blushirts aren’t exactly going to put a stop to it now.

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