# Traffic Conundrum **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 30, 2010, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037 "2010-01-30T18:06:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/1 "2010-01-30T18:06:52Z")
What would you do if you were driving along and you approached a flashing _green_ traffic light? Would you keep going, slow down, stop, or…? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/2 "2010-01-30T18:18:23Z")
I would slow down and watch what cross traffic is doing before deciding whether or not to stop. If there’s time, flip on the hazard lights to warn traffic behind. I’ve never seen a flashing green, I never hope to see one. But let me tell you this my friend, I’d rather see one than be one. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/3 "2010-01-30T18:34:00Z")
I would continue as I was, but watch the intersection very carefully. Green does mean go - yellow means caution, but flashing green is strange enough that it would alert me to look for unusual circumstances. I wouldn’t slow down or stop because that would be unpredictable behaviour for a green light, and unpredictable behaviour while driving is a Bad Thing. ---
**Author:** ![badlyburnttoast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ad7895/32.png) [@badlyburnttoast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badlyburnttoast)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/4 "2010-01-30T18:36:09Z")
I picked slow down, but on second thought I’m pretty sure the correct choice would be to treat it as a 4 way stop (and thus stop), since that’s what you’re supposed to default to when the light is malfunctioning. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/5 "2010-01-30T18:37:18Z")
Yeah, I would look to see if something strange was happening, if I could not figure it out, I would treat it as a blinking yellow - proceed if it is safe to do so. ---
**Author:** ![sharding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90db22/32.png) [@sharding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sharding)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/6 "2010-01-30T18:51:07Z")
In some parts of Canada (and possibly other places in the world – Canada is just the one I know of), this is part of normal operation. I’d treat it differently there than I would in the US, where it’s not normal (and could indicate a malfunction or other unusual circumstances). ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/7 "2010-01-30T19:02:44Z")
A flashing green arrow means a dedicated turn arrow here - is this what you mean by flashing green light? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/8 "2010-01-30T19:06:29Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > A flashing green arrow means a dedicated turn arrow here - is this what you mean by flashing green light? No-I’m talking about a flashing circular green light in the middle of an intersection, where you would normally see a steady red or green light. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/9 "2010-01-30T19:18:04Z")
I’d slow down too, mostly because I know green means “go” but I’m not positive what the flashing could signify besides caution. ---
**Author:** ![Roland\_Orzabal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@Roland\_Orzabal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roland_Orzabal)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/10 "2010-01-30T19:47:11Z")
I picked “keep going”, but after reading the thread, I think I may have started with a different assumption than most of the other responders. I figured **Czarcasm** was talking about something that looked like one of [these numbers](http://www.blogography.com/photos15/YellowLight.gif), only green. Considering I and the rest of the world drive straight through the yellow version if it’s on the main thoroughfare, I can’t imagine why I’d treat a green one differently, aside from giving it a bit of a :dubious: as I passed.\* If we’re talking about a regular three-color light with a blinking green, then I’d treat it as a malfunctioning light (and thus a four-way stop), since I’d be pretty sure it wasn’t supposed to be doing that. \*ETA: Of course, if it was flashing green in all directions at once, I’d probably reconsider. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/11 "2010-01-30T23:41:13Z")
California’s vehicle code has no provision for flashing green lights, though some locales use them to indicate a pre-emption by emergency vehicles. if I saw such a thing, with no sirens or other signs of an emergency, I’d approach slowly until I could see what sort of signal the cross traffic was facing, and proceed accordingly. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/12 "2010-01-30T23:43:20Z")
I’d wonder what I was doing in Canada - and then make sure there were no pedestrians around who might decide it’s not worth waiting for the crosswalk signal while I went through the intersection (flashing green lights are common there. It means that there’s a crosswalk button that could get pressed). If the gas stations around seemed to be selling in gallons rather than liters, then I’d slow down a little to make sure I wasn’t doing the wrong thing, but I wouldn’t stop. ---
**Author:** ![troub](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troub/32/14802_2.png) [@troub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troub)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2010, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/13 "2010-01-30T23:55:12Z")
Whoa, I picked “stop” because the light would be clearly malfunctioning, and I would slow down enough to be for all practical purposes pulling at least a “rolling stop.” Of course, this would be while keeping an eye behind to make sure it is safe to do so. I did see a light once that had a solid green light illuminated, but was _also_ flashing red. In all directions. The reality in that situation is simply that it is a harrowing experience, and you just do what you can to avoid an accident. Some people saw the green and just blew through, some saw the flashing red and treated it as a four-way stop, others slowly went through like a yellow. Definitely one of the scariest situations I’ve ever dealt with in a car (and I’ve been in several other near-misses and witness to shenanigans, but nothing quite like this). ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/14 "2010-01-31T00:19:16Z")
I’d do the same thing I always do when I come across something unfamiliar: Slow down and see if there’s anything I need to know or do. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/15 "2010-01-31T00:59:54Z")
So is this poll hypothetical, or have you encountered this somewhere? Once or regularly? ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/16 "2010-01-31T05:13:24Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > I’d wonder what I was doing in Canada - and then make sure there were no pedestrians around who might decide it’s not worth waiting for the crosswalk signal while I went through the intersection (flashing green lights are common there. It means that there’s a crosswalk button that could get pressed). > > If the gas stations around seemed to be selling in gallons rather than liters, then I’d slow down a little to make sure I wasn’t doing the wrong thing, but I wouldn’t stop. I’ve spent my 43 years in various areas of western Canada, and I’ve never seen a flashing green except for an advance green arrow. Canada is a big, varied place. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/17 "2010-01-31T05:13:53Z")
> [@ZenBeam](#): > > So is this poll hypothetical, or have you encountered this somewhere? Once or regularly? Just a hypothetical to see how people might react to such a twist. ---
**Author:** ![sharding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90db22/32.png) [@sharding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sharding)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/18 "2010-01-31T05:15:46Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I’ve spent my 43 years in various areas of western Canada, and I’ve never seen a flashing green except for an advance green arrow. Canada is a big, varied place. 🙂 They certainly have them in Vancouver – that’s the first place I ever saw them. ---
**Author:** ![Driver8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5a626/32.png) [@Driver8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Driver8)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/19 "2010-01-31T05:40:07Z")
Given that there is no known provision for a flashing green light anywhere I have driven, I would be on high alert, assuming something is wrong. I’d slow down or stop depending on visibility and the specific intersection. Also, encountering such an undocumented and unlikely scenario would shatter my world view and leave me extremely distressed 🙂 Broken lights are meant to flash red! ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037/20 "2010-01-31T06:00:16Z")
I’d probably treat it as a green light, but I’d make sure to see what the cross traffic had (do they have a flashing green also (that would be bad), flashing yellow? Red?). After clearing the intersection I’d call 911 to let them know the light is malfunctioning and they should probably get a squad or two out there to direct traffic until the city can fix the problem. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-conundrum/527037.md?page=2)