Is their any use for traffic lights

[BaoBaB]

Wondering why we have them if everyone are turning them OFF. Is their any situation where they're useful can you site examples thanks.

[Streeto]

I've only found the timed traffic lights useful (TM:PE).

[maxzimillion]

for big junctions. youll realism in timed traffic lights

[snowflitzer]

to be honest, I disable all traffic lights in my city. it all works better ;)

[TLHeart]

A group of time traffic lights can move large amounts of traffic... Takes TMPE to make that possible. The vanilla traffic lights are just useless.

[BeantownFan73]

Originally posted by snowflitzer:

to be honest, I disable all traffic lights in my city. it all works better ;)

I agree! Turned them all on, as test, on a smaller city I had (10k) and traffic flow went from mid upper 80’s down to high 60’s low 70’s!

[BeantownFan73]

Originally posted by tenderloveheart:

A group of time traffic lights can move large amounts of traffic... Takes TMPE to make that possible. The vanilla traffic lights are just useless.

I could never figure out the timed lights, always had issues and by issues I mean ME just not understanding it. I’d rather use Lights cause it’s more authentic but I tend to stay away cause I just make things worse.

[Snowwie]

Traffic lights do not really help. The only way they would help if you have a BIG intersection with equal traffic from all directions and no space for a roundabout. If you do have space then simply create a roundabout.

[TLHeart]

Originally posted by BeantownFan73:

Originally posted by tenderloveheart:

A group of time traffic lights can move large amounts of traffic... Takes TMPE to make that possible. The vanilla traffic lights are just useless.

I could never figure out the timed lights, always had issues and by issues I mean ME just not understanding it. I’d rather use Lights cause it’s more authentic but I tend to stay away cause I just make things worse.

It has taken me some play time and experimenting to figure them out... I Use timed traffic lights with right turn enabled via the options in TMPE to keep my industrial traffic pulsing, and therefore flowing, instead of clogging up at an intersection...

Have a lot of left turns, with right hand drive, blocking traffic, create a left turn lane, and then have a protected left turn traffic light. Yes it will reduce that percentage on the traffic panel, and turn the intersection red, but there is no persistant traffic jam, just the pulsing of traffic, which allows the other side streets space to enter the main road, and keep on moving.

I Use the traffic percentage as a guide. So long as traffic is moving, with no persistant traffic jams, the city functions, and I am happy.

[BeantownFan73]

Originally posted by tenderloveheart:

Originally posted by BeantownFan73:

I could never figure out the timed lights, always had issues and by issues I mean ME just not understanding it. I’d rather use Lights cause it’s more authentic but I tend to stay away cause I just make things worse.

It has taken me some play time and experimenting to figure them out... I Use timed traffic lights with right turn enabled via the options in TMPE to keep my industrial traffic pulsing, and therefore flowing, instead of clogging up at an intersection...

Have a lot of left turns, with right hand drive, blocking traffic, create a left turn lane, and then have a protected left turn traffic light. Yes it will reduce that percentage on the traffic panel, and turn the intersection red, but there is no persistant traffic jam, just the pulsing of traffic, which allows the other side streets space to enter the main road, and keep on moving.

I Use the traffic percentage as a guide. So long as traffic is moving, with no persistant traffic jams, the city functions, and I am happy.

Well then I guess it’s not all bad cause I have some red areas but traffic is moving, not backed up bad or anything. There’s a few spots I need to work on, but for the most part after reading this I’m not that bad off. Ehhh, too much of the perfectionist in me...everything has to be perfect.

[BucketBrain]

You can also create multi state traffic lights without a Mod in vanilla or with Move It . It depends on the angles of the streets at the crossing and how the roads are used ( flat - up - down ... )
This is a simple one to get a better flow for left turns
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1647262643
This one is a multi state with 4 streets but only 3 lights , to give a priority to the highest volume
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1654870620
And even at vanilla , the highest volume gets the longest green , if cars or bikes or pedestrians , volume counts .
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1790807987

[Markus Reese]

I have used lights in vanilla,, but never on cross flowing traffic. They best excel if traffic needs to merge onto another road, but not cross on same line of traffic. Example is if you have two busy highways needing to merge or two one ways crossing. You flow higher rate if you use lights to alternate instead of start/stop traffic

What I havent done and should is check whether light timing in vanilla is defined by street, so breaking up street into two streets at a major intersection will alternate. I shall have to try that.

[BucketBrain]

Originally posted by twistedmelon:

I have used lights in vanilla,, but never on cross flowing traffic. They best excel if traffic needs to merge onto another road, but not cross on same line of traffic. Example is if you have two busy highways needing to merge or two one ways crossing. You flow higher rate if you use lights to alternate instead of start/stop traffic

What I havent done and should is check whether light timing in vanilla is defined by street, so breaking up street into two streets at a major intersection will alternate. I shall have to try that.

Did you see this one ?
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1714216236
There are still a lot of vanilla solutions to find out , l think , have fun

[Markus Reese]

Oh yeah, have seen that one. Liked alot, simple and clever.

[Blake Walsh]

I'm another who find use for timed traffic lights.

I find them particularly useful for creating gaps in traffic on avenues, like say there's a highway that connects to an avenue, by releasing the highway traffic onto the avenue in pulses, that creates gaps so that traffic on side roads get an opportunity to enter the avenue. This could be said to be the collateral benefit of timed traffic lights that normal junctions and roundabouts don't offer.

[Markus Reese]

Actually, I had a screenshot of one instance where I needed a traffic light. This is the double highway where a merge lane didn't cut it in one city. (well could of if I used traffic manager, but I run no mods)

Issue was you have the main highway on left coming from one end of the city as well as one of the connections. This head across to another connection. The road coming from under the bridge is a major industrial area.

Because of the lack of mods, the cars with a merge lane like to do the cut across lanes and the three lanes into four I had before liked to just cut in resulting in the common traffic merging stop and go. By putting in a light, they could all travel in fast clumps.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1808296376