What are the disadvantages of a stoplight?
Stoplights in the wrong location can actually contribute to the problems they were meant to alleviate. Misplaced signals increase rear end accidents and in some cases, angle collisions still occur at signalized intersections when motorists run red lights. Stoplights can also create unnecessary travel on alternate routes and a more congested traffic flow. They can also create excessive delays, which in turn increase driver aggravation and encourage motorists to disobey signals. This problem is increased when stoplights are placed too close to each other. On an average State Highway , where signals are placed one-half of a mile apart, a driver can maintain an average speed of 36 mph. When the signals are spaced one-quarter of a mile from each other, the maximum average speed a driver can maintain drops to 18 mph.
