#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 ITE rescinded that guidance in September 2019, writing: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.
@DrTCombs I had no idea it was originally meant to save fuel.
@ascentale yep, and we *still* have strident environmentalists claiming that having to wait for pedestrians is bad for the environment because it makes them burn more gas
@ascentale Much of today's "we mustn't do anything to cause congestion" thinking is rooted in the gas crisis of the 70s. Since then the spectre of congestion has been (misguidedly) attached to so many counterproductive urban transportation policies. It's a *very* handy boogeyman.
@DrTCombs @ascentale So much worry about congestion, so little support for trains, buses and other means of getting cars off the road.
@DrTCombs
Urbanists need to reclaim congestion:
"Yes, the neighborhood was congested. It was congested with jobs, apartments, workers, shoppers, and businesses. Cities cannot function without congestion."
@ascentale