French traffic lights turn red if you are speeding - how recent?

[LittleGreyCat]

There seem to be press releases about French traffic lights (in towns and villages) turning red if you approach them above the speed limit.

Now I can remember this being a thing a good few years back, but I cannot remember exactly how far back I first encountered this.
Last time in France was in our Hymer B544 so that must have been pre-2015.
Could have been around 2008.
However a LONG way back we drove through France in a car.
Early to mid 90s I estimate.
It could well have been a thing then.

Bottom line is that I feel that I have always known this but Google (other online search engines are available) seem reluctant to give a date when this was first introduced.

Does anyone here have a memory?
[Couldn't resist the joke, sorry.]

 

[Guigsy]

I think they always used to have a series of lights timed so if you sped from one to the next, you'd end up stopping.

In the past few years, they are now installing lights in quiet villages that are red by default, and only turn green if you approach at or below the limit. The sensors and systems are now really cheap to install, so they're going everywhere. It literally becomes faster to drive a bit slower.

 

[Littlewheels]

I could never understand why this has never been taken up in the U.K. as it works and is affordable.
We have 20mph limit in our Village with one of those LED Speed indicators that show both the Speed a vehicle is traveling at with green smile if upto the limit and a red grimace if over it, 80% of the time it’s totally ignored and it’s not unusual to see it hit 50mph.

 

[VXman]

I could never understand why this has never been taken up in the U.K. as it works and is affordable.

Because they are only interested in getting money from fines. Putting in a good system of speed control would not bring in any revenue.

 

[Guigsy]

Because they are only interested in getting money from fines. Putting in a good system of speed control would not bring in any revenue.

It's really tough to get traffic signals equipment type approved by the DfT. As a result, there are few suppliers, development is slow and they charge a fortune. Although the DfT are loosening up on allowing more innovative sensors. So traffic signals that take hurry calls (not total control) from external smart sensors, which are starting to appear. There's a trial of a junction near me that has several cameras to watch the traffic and its AI uses hurry calls to alter the signal timing to improve throughput.

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[Mr porky]

If your going really fast you get through them before they turn to red . Just kidding.

 

[Stoosal]

Got a set of traffic lights on A75 at Springholm near Dumfries which turn red if above speed limit. Problem is the speeding car usually gets through then everybody else has to stop and they also stop traffic travelling in the opposite direction which doesn’t make any sense. Causes cars to get bunched together and means it’s like wacky races further on. The lorries hedn for the ferry just keep rolling and ignore the lights.

 

[Wanders from Glos]

They have them a while now.

 

[Abacist]

More common in Spain and/or Portugal!