# Inching forward at traffic lights **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 28, 2008, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inching-forward-at-traffic-lights/478983 "2008-12-28T18:31:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![mandala](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mandala/32/95_2.png) [@mandala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mandala)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2019, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inching-forward-at-traffic-lights/478983/81 "2019-07-18T09:28:07Z")
Turning left on amber or green is fraught with risk. My friend landed in hospital with serious injuries after he turned left on amber, and two incoming cars just accelerated to beat the lights. His car’s right side got ripped open by two impacts at 40+ mph. Yes, the burden of ensuring a safe left turn lies with the driver wanting to make the turn, but many people just instinctively floor the gas when they see amber, rather than preparing to stop, even when they safely can. Large heavy-traffic intersections MUST have the dedicated turn lights, increased light duration, and make turning left at other times illegal. (Ironically, my friend’s intersection did have one - he missed the arrow. He may have been under pressure to complete the turn by traffic behind him.) ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2019, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inching-forward-at-traffic-lights/478983/82 "2019-07-18T12:48:47Z")
> [@mandala](#): > > Turning left on amber or green is fraught with risk. My friend landed in hospital with serious injuries after he turned left on amber, and two incoming cars just accelerated to beat the lights. His car’s right side got ripped open by two impacts at 40+ mph. Yes, the burden of ensuring a safe left turn lies with the driver wanting to make the turn, but many people just instinctively floor the gas when they see amber, rather than preparing to stop, even when they safely can. Large heavy-traffic intersections MUST have the dedicated turn lights, increased light duration, and make turning left at other times illegal. > > (Ironically, my friend’s intersection did have one - he missed the arrow. He may have been under pressure to complete the turn by traffic behind him.) But that’s the case with ALL left turns: wait until all oncoming traffic has actually stopped, not merely that you think they should have. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2019, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inching-forward-at-traffic-lights/478983/83 "2019-07-18T13:24:22Z")
Eleven years after the OP, and idjits are still crawling ahead a few inches at a time at traffic lights. I think these are the same people who wait on lines at retail places six feet behind the person in front of them, so no one knows if there’s really a line or not. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2019, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inching-forward-at-traffic-lights/478983/84 "2019-07-18T13:45:41Z")
This is one of my personal bugs. The crosswalk is for pedestrian who are crossing the street, not so you can inch forward and get to your destination two seconds earlier. And if the light turn red when I’m in the crosswalk, do not honk your horn. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2019, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inching-forward-at-traffic-lights/478983/85 "2019-07-18T13:48:23Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Eleven years after the OP, and idjits are still crawling ahead a few inches at a time at traffic lights. > > I think these are the same people who wait on lines at retail places six feet behind the person in front of them, so no one knows if there’s really a line or not. I do it now just to see if the person behind me inches up too. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2019, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inching-forward-at-traffic-lights/478983/86 "2019-07-18T14:46:51Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Hmm. Like Diogenes the Cynic, I’ve never read anything close to it being legal to do this. The wording of Q.E.D.'s cite, “some states,” implies that law is probably in only a minority of states, or else it would say “many states” or “most states,” wouldn’t it? For what it is worth, Mrs. Plant (v.2.0) referred to that maneuver as a “New York turn”. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2019, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inching-forward-at-traffic-lights/478983/87 "2019-07-18T15:39:49Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Eleven years after the OP, and idjits are still crawling ahead a few inches at a time at traffic lights. I don’t really have a problem with the inchers and we should be a lot happier with anyone actively anticipating a light change instead of staring at their phones. ---
**Author:** ![Rough\_Draft](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@Rough\_Draft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rough_Draft)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2019, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inching-forward-at-traffic-lights/478983/88 "2019-07-18T17:12:56Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > I don’t really have a problem with the inchers and we should be a lot happier with anyone actively anticipating a light change instead of staring at their phones. Amen! People who dawdle while playing with their phones are one of my biggest irritants as a commuter. Another is people who drive 5 mph under the speed limit in the left lane. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inching-forward-at-traffic-lights/478983.md?page=4)