#ITE (the Institute of Transportation Engineers) began recommending #RTOR (right turn on red) as a fuel saving measure in 1986. ITE rescinded that guidance in September 2019, writing:
"The existing [recommendation] fails to provide a sufficiently robust analysis of the impacts, especially with regards to the potential impacts on the safety of #pedestrians using #crosswalks."
ITE's full statement on rescinding the RTOR recommendation:
https://www.ite.org/pub/?id=B59F0054-B3AE-FD5C-81E5-62E18920B5DC
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So, since first recommending the use of right turn on red in urban settings 37 years ago, ITE has determined a) they don't know whether allowing RTOR was safe for pedestrians, b) there was never enough data to support allowing RTOR, and c) it's no longer OK to prioritize traffic flow over safety.
The notion of getting rid of RTOR is becoming increasingly popular, with multiple media outlets arguing for its demise (e.g., https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2022/10/right-turn-on-red-ban-washington-dc-gas-crisis/)
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Yet in most US states, turning right on a red light is still allowed by default.
There's no evidence #RTOR does what it was meant to do: save fuel.
There is evidence that it increases the risks to pedestrians even when (especially when) they are using crosswalks and following traffic signals.
There's widespread acknowledgment that our longstanding focus on traffic flow kills people.
Why are we still turning right on red? This is the lowest of the low hanging fruit. Ban #RTOR.
Something I absolutely fail to understand : whenever I have to drive (which is very often), when I am waiting at an intersection, anyone standing on the corner waiting to cross, almost every single time, waits until the light has changed and crosses against the light.
In other words, they will wait, and wait, and wait, while the car traffic crosses the intersection in the direction they want to cross. Then, when the light has changed to allow car traffic in the cross-direction, they will start out into the intersection.
Now, I've crossed against a light plenty of times, when it was safe to do so (there are badly-timed lights near me that virtually demand this), but not like that. I'm at a loss.
@tsukkitsune This is not a thing I have encountered before, and is indeed perplexing.
However, people on foot will generally take whatever action they perceive to be the most rational response to their situation, so maybe there's more going on than is obvious from the road? I honestly don't know! Gotta be a reason though.
