traffic lights not sensing motorcyclist. what can you do?

I've got several lights in my town that never sense me. Mostly left turns. Annoying. Has anybody had success getting these things adjusted in town? Not sure where to start.

 

there was a huge thread about this about 2 years ago.... depending on your twon and what type they use, there is the pressure type or the circut type... pressure ones go by weight and the other well it uses a small electrica current that goes thru you r feet.. both need to be on the ground for this to work.... or you jsut have to hit the pad in the right spot...

 

In California you cam run the light if you waited reason number of light cycles and it did not change and is safe to do so. These sensors work on magneto resistance, it senses large pieces of steel or ferrous material like iron etc. Sometimes kicking the side stand or center stand down and tapping the floor with it works, if it doesn't just run it, that's what I do. Or wait for a caged to pull up behind you which could be forever if it's in the middle of the night in a non busy intersection.

 

What exactly are these traffic lights that everyone keeps referring to ?? :tongue:

Rollin

 

Check your state & local laws, As many allow Motorcycles & Bicycles to stop at the red light as if is a flashing red, as long as it is a known signal that doesn't sence that you are there.

You can contact your local Municipal works / street department to see if the light is triggered by weight or is magnetic, & if they can adjust it. ( I remember as a Kid, we use to jump onto the weight sensors to make the signals change. we were easily amused! :tongue:

 

side stand on the ground. It kills the power on my bike, but it always works...even with our gates around my office building...just make sure you are on the pad (usually like a 6' wide, 24" deep spot about 3-4 feet from the line of the light...)

 

If you stop on the cut line it helps. They are the cuts you see on the tarmac, it works in my gated communitites as well as all the TL we have here. Try it...Anywhooo...

 

Some are motion activated. Look at the light for the sensor. If so be in the middle of your lane for bbest results. Find out which agency maintains that particulas light and report it. If no one tells them there is a problem they will not know there is. They have an obligation to insure these work for motorcycles too. Be persistant until they work properly or take your complaint up the chain of ommand

 

get some neo magnets from lowes or home depot and stick to any ferrous metal part of your bike should help out a lot did with my bikes usually takes a few to trip the loop and neos are the strongest sometimes you have to stack a few or just make a small line you can also ductape to the inside of the lowest part of your fairing tons of thoughts there.

 

Here is an intersection that has NEVER turned for me alone. The street was put in around 2002...not sure if that make a difference. LOTS of the lights around here have this problem. Are the plates under one of those tar squares?



Thanks for the tips!

 

Wait two minutes, look both ways, and go (not in front of a cop, of course). I've done it hundreds of times without consequence.

 

Tared squares are magnetic sensors

 

I know I posted somewhere about this before, but the town should have a traffic engineer. Or do like I did, where I just start calling the non-emergency line and state that I am stuck at a red light on a motorcycle and cannot trigger the light, you need assistance to safely go through the light. If it is a slow night they may send someone. After a while, the street department should come out and readjust it so that your bike will trigger the light.

 

the tar square sensors work on magnetic inductance, you and your bike make a change in the measured inductance value for that square. The problem is that it works best with ferides (read iron and other metals that conduct magnitism). I had this problem and the town would not fix it, their reason is that if its made more sensitive then the lights will just change at random and some times get stuck. I now ride with steel toe boots and have not had a problem since. Some riders place magnets on their fairings, this may halp if your just not quite making the value to cause the change in lights. Placing your wheels (if they are OEM wheels then this works) on the cut lines on two squres (if available) will make the lights change for you, if there is only one square then try to postition yourself so that as much of your bike is inside the square.

pressure types do not sense your weight but the impact you make on the pavement on approach, since bikes dont make a hard enough impact on the pad just stomp your foot when you put it down and it will see you.

AND report trouble lights! If you dont complain then they dont have to fix it.

 

So I went out with Steel Toes and two feet down did it every time.

Thanks again!!!

 

How fat are you? If a 500lb bike doesn't make enough impact, stomping your foot wont.

 

Oh oh a sumo viffer rider hahah

 

your 500lbs bike does not make 500lbs of force on the pavement when rolling. most of your bikes weight is in suspention to start with thus redusing the dynamic load on the wheels. There is also the fact that a mass in motion has no weight, but differing vectors of aceleration. one is in the direction of travel, a smaller one is to the loaded side of balance, another even smaller one is to the center of the largest mass on which it travels. Once you stop on the impact sensor you bias it with the mass of the bike so all you need is to stomp your foot and let the static mass of your bike become part of the dynamic mass that you exert on the sensor. A 60lbs leg can exert over 400lbs of force plus a portion (I have not and really do not want to calc this) of the static bias mass of your 500lbs bike can and does trigger the sensors logic to change the light. Any highschooler that has taken Physics 11 and 12 could understand this. Most of us that have furthered our education in any of the engineering fields have had to take further studdies in practical physics and have a much better understanding on this. Its not about weight, its about force (mass X acceleration). If you stoppied to the sensor then dropped your rear on it it would have the same effect.

 

that there b me lol

 

Stoppies at every stop light!!!!!!!!