Signalling ambiguity

Ever quite so often, I wish for a dashboard camera. Pictures that would capture in a trice the happenings on the roads of Kolkata would indeed be worth the thousands of words I labour to express – sometimes funny, sometimes heart-warming, and sometimes exasperating. On our general confusion with the traffic signals, for instance, they would speak volumes!

For decades, things were easier, and only three lights used to be there, red, amber and green. They were positioned on wooden or metal posts on the left corner of the road or in the middle of the traffic island with lights facing four ways. It is customary to drive on the left in this country; hence, an automatic left turn at crossings was the norm.

The signal posts of yesteryears are still standing. They also function, although greenery growing around them may obscure their lights sometimes. We have juxtaposed modernity now, with more rows of lights hung up ahead. The multiple new green lights qualify the single homogenous green light of old, and are redesigned into a green arrow to point out the direction more specifically. There are as many arrows as there are roads diverging from the crossing. Rendered necessary, I suppose, now that the numbers have increased, of people, and correspondingly, of traffic.

For additional help, single lights, red or green, are placed on the left or right of the road. The information the ordinary driver needs to drive safely is obtainable partly ahead, partly on the left, and partly on the right. Unfortunately, in the midst of heavy traffic, these are difficult to spot, let alone collate on the fly. Most people don’t bother their heads with them, and just go with the flow. It is so much easier to follow somebody else. It must be our herd instinct, do whateverthey are doing, right or wrong! 

The rules have changed from yesteryears, and the automatic left facility no longer exists. A “no free left” signboard stuck halfway up on the old traffic signal post says so. But how many of the drivers in Kolkata read English, anyway? It is thus unnoticed or just ignored. The point is the free left still exists in the minds of many drivers. Without the specific signal, yes, it is often freely appropriated; leaving behind those that can read feeling stupid!

I notice at several crossings, the “go left” green arrow comes on some seconds after the red light stops all traffic on the route. Vehicles bound for that direction begins to move, but after a few seconds more, that green light goes off again. Must the left-bound traffic already on the move stop again ? On a right turn, they must stop, of course, because traffic on the straight will soon be oncoming. But on the left turn, certainly no such difficulty exists. Still, I prefer to wait for the clear signal. However, for many other drivers that initial green arrow is go-ahead enough to keep going. Seems to me that if so, the signal too should stay on for the entire duration the channel is open. Surely, common sense dictates that! 

In many places, timers next to the signal lights count down the seconds. They look very precise and efficient technological tools. Motorists can see for themselves how much longer they have to wait for the go signal, or conversely, how long the channel will remain open. To my mind, though, it is the major irritant we can do without. The timings programmed into them are abysmal.  It may be that many of these signal lights have manual overrides, and the fault lies with their operators, since it is their duty to ensure that traffic on any particular road is not backed up too far too long. And what easier way to clear the traffic jams on one route, than to freeze the signal lights on the others until it is!

Often, despite the timer having already counted down to “00” (zero seconds remaining), motorists continue to be greeted with the unblinking red light. This may go on for an indefinite period – I’ve counted 30, 60 and even 90 more seconds sometimes with the timer frozen on zero! Why install them in the first place if their purpose is abused? They are meant to be an accurate gauge of time, in this case for stopping or for going, but appear to become the instrument of somebody’s whim.

Furthermore, if the signal operators forget to remove the override at the end of their day, it carries forward to the next. On an ordinary working morning recently, traffic was light. Before rush hour, those out early could beat the logistical delays, and they probably expected to do so. At a crossing in front of a hospital, the timer had already counted down, but the signal remained red. Since there was no obvious emergency happening there, may be the light was malfunctioning. Drivers soon became restive. Several just drove off. Unwilling to run the red light, some stayed put. That frustrated those behind them. The hospital zone was then treated to their high decibel venting, until finally, finally, the signal turned green! 

On many routes, the red and green signal lights are turned off during the very early hours of the morning. Only the amber continues to flash, warning people to be careful and responsible as they drive along. It makes sense for that hour, because traffic is anyway so sparse. The motorists don’t have to waste time just waiting on empty roads. But again, there is inconsistency; on some routes, the red and green are active, despite the traffic being just as sparse. Hence, minutes of stoppage time are mandatory. Many drivers don’t bother to wait. Instead, indulging their needs for speed, they zoom right through the intersections. The onus is on others, the more sedate motorists, to forget the signals, just get out of the way! 

The little red and green men, signalling at pedestrian crossings, are meant to light up in opposite to the main traffic signals. Their task is to alert pedestrians when it is safe to walk and when not. That is, the standing red man shines to halt pedestrians when the motor traffic is on the go, and conversely, the walking green man shines to indicate that their getting across the road is now safe. Situations arise however, that would be comical if they weren’t potentially dangerous. Somebody connects together all the ‘red’ lights in the signals, and all the green ones too. As a result, pedestrians are cautioned “don’t walk”, when the traffic is at a standstill, and encouraged to “walk” when the signal light to motorists too is green for go!

Perhaps it is just as well that most people on foot in Kolkata ignore the traffic lights completely. They don’t labour over ambiguity and cross precisely when they deem it right to! With the technology to guide safe road travel frequently going awry, in their minds, it is much safer for them to take charge of their own lives!

But if, out of sheer frustration, motorists begin likewise to ignore the lights, and follow their own ideas on the road, it becomes a very different, even ugly story. Road safety depends on traffic signals being unambiguous. The technology is meant to ensure that they also are consistently precise. Traffic signals are there to help people on the road be safe, not to raise the general stress levels. Doubts created in the mind compel motorists to second-guess themselves, become dangers to themselves and to others. We need clarity on the road, not information overload nor tactics disrespectful of the public’s intelligence.