DaveInDaytona
Pro
Posts: 1696
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posted June 18, 2003 06:12 PM
Want to Run a Red Light Legally ?
Go to Tennesee and bring your bike..............
Law allowing motorcycles to run red lights effective July 1
The Associated Press
KNOXVILLE -- Beginning July 1, Tennessee motorcyclists can legally run red lights -- if they stop first and "exercise due care" -- under a bill signed into law by Gov. Phil Bredesen.
Motorcyclists had complained they were forced to wait excessive periods of time at stop lights because sensors that control the lights did not recognize motorcycles, which are now made mostly of aluminum and fiberglass, not metal.
For Nashville area resident and motorcyclist Steve Lundwall, the law can't begin too soon.
"Sometimes, I put down the kickstand and just wait (at a stoplight)," said Lundwall, a business analyst in Nashville and state director of Concerned Motorcyclists of Tennessee.
His group helped push the bill through the Legislature.
The new law isn't as popular with the state's law enforcement and transportation community, who say it will be difficult to enforce.
"It almost takes it out of our hands to write a ticket for motorcycles running a red light," said Lt. Bob Lyons of Nashville's Traffic Division. "How do we know if he's been sitting there or not?"
Sgt. Jeff Keeter, a motorcycle officer in Nashville for six years, said he's felt the frustration of being stuck at red lights but thinks the law may cause accidents.
"We'll have motorcycles trying to cross six lanes. ... Working traffic collisions, I don't have much confidence in drivers or riders.
"I can't believe this was even considered."
The governor signed the bill because "ultimately, the research did not show an increased safety risk," Bredesen spokeswoman Lydia Lenker said.
At least one other state, Minnesota, has passed a similar law, the model for Tennessee's statute, said Wayne Shaub of Brentwood, legislative chairman for Concerned Motorcyclists of Tennessee.
Bill Moore, chief engineer with the Tennessee Department of Transportation, earlier told a Senate committee there could be safety concerns. The Senate passed the bill 28-1 last month.
"We don't want to see anyone injured or killed. We don't have the greatest safety record in Tennessee, and we don't think this would improve it," Moore said. "They're trading convenience for some safety issues."
In 2000, there were 1,751 accidents involving motorcycles, with 65 fatalities. Fatalities could include pedestrians or motorists involved in the crash, Moore said.
Tennessee Department of Transportation did not take an official position on the bill and has not done in-depth research on it, TDOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely said.
Some senators, concerned the measure would give motorcyclists license to run red lights, added an amendment to tighten the law. It says bikers cannot use the law as a defense to run any red light they want by saying they believed the light was controlled by sensors that did not recognize their motorcycles.
Sen. Bill Clabough, R-Maryville, sponsored the bill.
http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/0603/06redlight.html
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ZHooligan
Moderator
Post Whore Extraordinaire!
Posts: 3829
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posted June 18, 2003 06:29 PM
Sounds like it could get interesting! Probably be more then a few guys getting ran over.
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has touched them in the past and how much it can hold in the
future; -- Youth is forever.
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12RPilot
Pro
Posts: 1094
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posted June 18, 2003 06:42 PM
When I approach a red light I line the bike up so that I can put the kickstand down right on the sensor loop. If that doesn't work, I'll just run it when it's safe to do so. My mommy taught me to cross a street safely years ago. I would hope this doesn't get abused and the law rescinded.
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If you aren't an AMA member, you're part of the problem.
NESBA #209
http://www.bikepics.com/members/12rpilot/04zx10r/
 
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frEEk
Administrator
ummm... yeah
Posts: 9660
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posted June 18, 2003 08:28 PM
quote:
sensors that control the lights did not recognize motorcycles, which are now made mostly of aluminum and fiberglass, not metal.
1) when's the last time u saw fiberglass used on a (stock) motorcycle?
2) aluminum isnt metal?
maybe i'm bein picky, but how can a newspaper print this shit? have they ever heard of a fact checker?
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flite leader
Zone Head
Posts: 651
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posted June 18, 2003 08:47 PM
never had a problem
lanes in our area "count the # of cars
yes if you are the only car or moto sitting there
it doesnt want to cycle
otherwise if you pull up
& there is no traffic in the other directions of travel
they usually will cycle thru
here they will give tickets for "causing " the sensor to cycle
in other words backing up several lengths..... then pulling foward again
defintely a no no !!!
no less we also cant split lanes
at anytime..... even if a lane is blocked
cars & trucks cant move
even at a snail pass
bikes are not allowed to flow thru
go figure
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your car is slow
Needs a job
Fuck Nitrous...Got Boost?
Posts: 4089
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posted June 18, 2003 10:26 PM
In florida...if you are at an intersection and the light cycles once or twice without giving you an arrow...it can be considered a malfunctioning traffic device...and treated as 4 way stop sign.
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kcadby
Pro
Posts: 1733
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posted June 19, 2003 06:07 PM
It used to be a problem in South Fl for SURE...lights wouldn't cycle for Cycles...
Doesn't seem to be too bad any more...I guess they see bikes better now???
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redelk
Moderator
Please... speak to the hand.
Posts: 3212
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posted June 19, 2003 07:13 PM
Yes, aluminum is a metal, but is not conductive to a magnetic field.
Many of these sensors are what is called a "inductive loop". In the vehicle's chassis, currents are induced by the alternating field of the loop. These currents form a magnetic field themselves and have a countereffect on the original field.
Very rarely will a bike trigger one of these loops. Usually, it's the timer backup that causes the signal to change. I actually will occasionally run into the same problem with my 7000 lb truck. Since the frame is so high from the sensor, it won't have enough of an effect on the sensor to trigger the light.
For mor information on how these type of sensors work:
http://www.weiss-electronic.de/deutsch/pdf/Loop_Installation.pdf
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frEEk
Administrator
ummm... yeah
Posts: 9660
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posted June 19, 2003 07:59 PM
know it's not a magnetically conductive (ferrous) metal, and the original artical is valid in that point, but it's a blatant error regardless. interestingly, i havent had a problem being detected at stoplights. maybe it's jsut cause the 12 is such a pig, or our sensors are more sensitive. acutally, i may have been unable to trip a sensor on the odd occasion, but the vat majority of time i do so without waiting extra time.
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Ninjaman12R
Needs a job
as a Deal's Gap tour guide.
Posts: 4767
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posted June 20, 2003 03:59 AM
Fuck a red light.........
Ahhh..... Tennessee, what a great state thou art. 
Being a resident of Tennessee I appreciate this. I've been paranoid on several occassions when the light wouldn't change and I had to run it. You never know where five-o is at, or how they will treat you if you try to explain that the light wouldn't change. Atleast now this will give us a little "leverage".  A law abidding citizen such as myself will sleep a little better at night now. 
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What we're dealin' with here is a complete lack of respect for the law.
Sheriff Buford T. Justice of TEXAS
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harryzx-12
Needs a job
Posts: 3643
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posted June 20, 2003 05:34 AM
I'm with Ninjaman "fuck a red light"! You've got to use common sense. There's quite a few lights around here that won't cycle for a bike. I've always run them when they did that as long as johnny law wasn't around.
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"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways- Body thoroughly used up, totally worn out...Screaming "WOO HOO, What a Ride !!!"
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fish_antlers
Administrator
The Truth is Out There
Posts: 21896
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posted June 20, 2003 07:00 AM
aluminum isnt metal and dont you guys get smart with them Tennessee'inz ..... aw- right-nawwww?
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What business is it of yours where I'm from, Friendo?
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wannabe
Pro
Posts: 1931
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posted June 20, 2003 08:06 AM
I'm with the Tennessee boys. Go Tennessee!!!
What the heck is going on? A state finally comes around and makes a law that makes things LESS restrictive for motorcyclists, and people are still complaining???
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zx11_12
Expert Class
Posts: 207
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posted June 22, 2003 03:49 AM
I've found that flashing my high beam will trigger the inductive loop 99% of the time. I read that somewhere and have been doing it for a few years. Try it and see if it works in your area. It's much etter than sitting and waiting.
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"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences."
PJ O'Rourke
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