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April 17, 2009 3:37 p.m. aircooled SuperDork

Just curious what the general consensus is here about left turn lights that need to be activated (by sensors in the road). They of course do not sense motorcycles (at least not mine) so if you are sitting at one alone, you are hosed.

I wonder if most cops would give you a ticked for just making the turn? Going across lanes to make a right-turn, u-turn or a straight u-turn right-turn is not exactly any safer (and many time is not legal either).

I don't know about anyone else, but it is pretty damn irritating to me.
April 17, 2009 3:45 p.m. MrJoshua SuperDork

I know a guy who just treats them like stop signs in a car. (We won't mention any names here )
April 17, 2009 4:06 p.m. DILYSI Dave UltimaDork

Wait for one cycle of the light. If it doesn't give you green after it has had 1 full cycle, proceed with caution.
April 17, 2009 4:09 p.m. racinginc215 Reader

they make a thing for that I have a friend with one on his bike he swears by it. I've never had the problem then again I don't turn left at lights much in my daily commute.
April 17, 2009 4:21 p.m. Keith UberDork

Park the bike on top of the visible cut in the pavement.
April 17, 2009 7:26 p.m. stuart in mn Dork

Keith wrote:

Park the bike on top of the visible cut in the pavement.

Correct answer. There's a loop of wire in the pavement that senses metal. Make sure the frame of the bike is right over the cut, not sitting in the middle of the loop.
April 17, 2009 7:55 p.m. benzbaron Reader

They make something for bikes to trigger the light, I think it is an amplified magnet or something to trigger the coil. I just wait until I get pissed off, look around both ways twice, cross my finger and take off. I drive an aircooled bike and the threat of overheating means I need to keep moving, the same excuse for cutting lanes.

Good luck!
April 18, 2009 7:19 a.m. senador New Reader

Try these attached to the bottom of your bike. BTW I am not affiliated, etc., etc.

http://www.unitednuclear.com/magnets.htm

Warning: rare earth magnets are very powerful. Do not swallow them!

PS... A company called United Nuclear Corporation once built Navy Ship Reactors in Connecticut. I don't think these are the same folks.
April 18, 2009 8:53 a.m. Grtechguy UltraDork

good information.... I was thinking it was weight.

my bike weighing 360lbs not being enough
April 18, 2009 9:22 a.m. senador New Reader

Rare earth magnets can also be fun. Just ask the Mythbusters.
April 19, 2009 12:26 a.m. Mental UberDork

Colorado passed a law that in periods of little traffic, you can run them on a bike after two cycles. In Oklahoma I had a large magnet on the lowest part of my cruiser and it actually worked in places I had little luck before...sometimes. At night some of the lights are triggered by headlights, so flashing your high beams might do it. Here on some sensors I have done pretty good by stopping very hard on the sensors described above. Not a stoppie, but a lot of force on the front. But in periods of traffic, I just pull forward and motion for the car behind me to pull up to the sensor. 95% they get it.
April 19, 2009 10:33 a.m. Keith UberDork

It's not weight, it's picking up the metal in the bike.
April 19, 2009 5:11 p.m. wheelsmithy New Reader

I usually drop the kickstand(safety removed, of course), put the stand directly on the "cut" as the mighty Tanner puts it, and lever the bike's weight onto it. Works.
April 19, 2009 8:11 p.m. RealMiniDriver Dork

The magnets don't work. They're snake oil.

Stop over the cut, or to one side or the other if not visible. If that doesn't work, wait one cycle, then proceed with caution as mentioned
April 19, 2009 9:28 p.m. MrJoshua SuperDork

Check mirrors, check traffic, make sure no one is in line behind you (they may follow you assuming the arrow is green) then go. Its a minor infraction with a moderate fine.
April 20, 2009 7:56 a.m. CrackMonkey Reader

Like above, park over the "cuts". Also, cycle the starter motor, if you have one - the magnetic field is often enough to trigger the light.

If all that fails, wait a full cycle, then treat it like a stop sign. Most areas have the law written so a faulty red light becomes a stop, and in this case, it is effectively faulty.
April 20, 2009 8:24 a.m. mistanfo Dork

In talking to the local police, they have told me that if I have waited a FULL cycle, and not gotten a green light, that I should proceed with caution. Some intersections have been paved, and you can't see where the wire is anymore. They even said that if I do get pulled over, to explain to the officer what I had done and why, and that I would probably be allowed to proceed sans ticket. If I did get a ticket, take it to court, and calmly explain to the judge what happened. Chances are, you'll get off.

Also, I think that South Carolina allows you to proceed on a red light (on a motorcycle) if you have faced a red light for 3 minutes. Anyone from SC able to confirm this?
April 20, 2009 1:41 p.m. aircooled SuperDork

OK, good advise. I did not think go the kick stand one, that is a good one. I realize it is the metal that is doing it, but with fairly tall tires and thin rims (dual sport) I don't think the rims will do it.

I know of an old trick to open an automatic gate with one of those on the other side, just throw a metal plate over the sensors. I wonder how much metal it takes though? I was thinking of a small thick plate on a string you could throw down. I would be pretty silly and inconvenient, but might work.

Realistically it is pretty uncommon, but can be bad when you are in areas that normally have high traffic in a low traffic time.
April 20, 2009 3:57 p.m. Mental UberDork

Or...

Do a stopppie as you hit the intersection, wave your non-gloved hand in the air showing off the tank top (make sure your backwards ball cap macthes) and as the rear of the bike comes down, throw your beer can down and squash it with the rear tire. This combined with your girlfirends exposed thong and belly ring (halter top yo) should be sufficent to change the light. If it doesn't, a smokey burnout should do the trick.
April 20, 2009 4:45 p.m. alex Reader

I've heard (unconfirmed by any actual science) that entering the inductive field at a higher rate will more thoroughly interrupt the field and trip the sensor. Obviously, attempt at your own risk, what with variations in surface and such.

I generally treat most stoplights around downtown St. Louis at stop signs anyway, just cause, aside from the rush hours, there's almost no traffic, and it's pointless to wait for an interminably long light for zero cross traffic. Screw it, I say.
April 21, 2009 5:00 a.m. foxtrapper SuperDork

I've yet to get a ticket at one of these lights, but I've been pulled over more than once by the cop sitting there watching me waiting to see what I'm going to do.

I've had moderate luck with coming onto the sensor coils fast, but I don't know if that's what helped, or the hard braking lowering my mass closer to the coil.

I've never noticed any improvement by locating my mass centered in the coil, over the edge, or any other location.
April 26, 2009 1:15 p.m. dorri732 New Reader

mistanfo wrote:

Also, I think that South Carolina allows you to proceed on a red light (on a motorcycle) if you have faced a red light for 3 minutes. Anyone from SC able to confirm this?

It's 2 minutes.
April 28, 2009 8:59 a.m. pinchvalve UltraDork

I usually wait one full cycle, then proceed with caution. I haven't tried the magnet thing, but I have tried swearing at the light and it does not work.
April 29, 2009 4:31 p.m. spitfirebill HalfDork

mistanfo wrote:

In talking to the local police, they have told me that if I have waited a FULL cycle, and not gotten a green light, that I should proceed with caution. Some intersections have been paved, and you can't see where the wire is anymore. They even said that if I do get pulled over, to explain to the officer what I had done and why, and that I would probably be allowed to proceed sans ticket. If I did get a ticket, take it to court, and calmly explain to the judge what happened. Chances are, you'll get off.

Also, I think that South Carolina allows you to proceed on a red light (on a motorcycle) if you have faced a red light for 3 minutes. Anyone from SC able to confirm this?

Yes.

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