Re: Vintage traffic signals (sidetracked from Tram & Pedestrian Accident Today - 22.12)

[Paul Blair <pblair@pcug.org.au>]

I well recall both the Aspendale/Carrum clock signals, and the Geelong
"tube" signals. Melbourne also had a lot of fixed cycle signals -
meaning that, no matter the offering traffic, the different aspects
just kept cycling. Noon or midnight - the time sharing didn't change.

Later signals were fitted with "detectors" - some sort of device to
check that vehicles had approached the signals. These were all types,
none of which have been exceptionally reliable. Most authorities
reckon that having not more than 10% defective at any time is good
going!

Most of the signal companies were in Sydney, so a lot of test sites
were there, and we had a few in Canberra. We tried all sorts of ground
mounted devices, bus priority devices, but the best was to use a CB
radio to interfere with a harmonic frequency of the pole-mounted
detector boxes! Some of the CB fraternity figured this out, and could
drive for long diistances without copping a red light.

Paul Blair

On Thu, 30 Dec 1999 00:52:01 +1100, "Exnarc" <gwrly@netspace.net.au>
wrote:

>
>Ronald BESDANSKY <ronbest@bigpond.com> wrote in message
>news:zQda4.3936$oJ5.9082@newsfeeds.bigpond.com...
>>
>> David Bennetts <davibenn@pcug.org.au> wrote in message
>> news:38682df2.0@newshost.pcug.org.au...
>> >
>> > Snip
>>
>> >  As for the Geelong lights, I
>> > can just remember them as a youngster, they were coloured fluro tubes on
>> > poles mounted in the centre of the intersection.  My father drove
>through
>> > three or four intersections with them before he realised that they were
>> > supposed to be traffic lights, having seen nothing like them before or
>> > since.
>> >
>> I heard this used to happen when traffic lights were first installed in
>> country towns!
>>
>>
>> --
>> Rgds
>>
>> Ron BESDANSKY
>>
>There used to be some really cute ones at Chelsea or was it Edithvale??
>
>They were a round face with a clock type hand, the face was divided up into
>RED-AMBER-GREEN, the hand would rotate through the different colours, whilst
>the hand was moving through RED it was obviously "STOP", likewise whilst
>operating through GREEN it was "GO" etc.
>
>The beauty of these signals was that you could see when the lights were
>going to change.
>
>Ah progress, not we only guess, or pre-empt the changing of the lights!!!
>
>Bob.
>

-------------------------------
Paul Blair
pblair@pcug.org.au