Traffic Lights

Mr. Spellar
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will investigate the effect on the flow of traffic of a flashing yellow traffic light during off-peak hours.

Gillian Merron
The Department has no plans to consider adopting flashing yellow traffic signals during off-peak hours. Removing the protection afforded by a red signal leads to concerns for the safety of pedestrians, especially blind or partially sighted pedestrians. The preferred method is for more traffic responsive operation of traffic signals which should lead to reductions in unnecessary delays.