Traffic Lights in the USA

[Spanner81]

Does anyone know why traffic lights are suspended so high up in the USA?

[IndieSinger]

I thought I had two answers for you for a moment, but I've just thought about them more and I've just argued against them (*COUGHschizoCOUGH*).
I was going to say that firstly, it's easier for lorry [did you know they don't use the word "lorry" in America?] drivers to see because their cabins are high up. But regular height lights would still be fine (only the low ones you find in France would be out of sight, but they're part of a set of two anyway). Then I thought that maybe it's so that the queue [another word they don't use] of traffic behind them can see what the lights are doing. But then I thought 'Why does it matter to people far back in the queue what's going on at the front?'.

So in short, Spanner81, this is a completely useless post and I have absolutely no idea. Maybe they're just nosey... hehe.

Hang on, I've just had a thought. On fast roads, maybe it's so that you can see the lights changing a long way in the distance so you don't have to brake suddenly?

[Harley]

On the major roads the name of the side road is also hung up on a gantry, it seems logical to hang the lights up there as well, otherwise you would not see the lights changing while reading the names of the side streets.

[Cycleman]

Its an a American thing.

[Pinotage]

They're high up so they are not hit by the huge trucks that use the roads there. As to why suspend them over the road instead of on poles either side of the road like we do, I'd guess there are a couple of reasons, first that many of the junctions have multiple lanes and there can be lights for different lanes, secondly on small roads they can get away with one (four-sided) light box over the centre of the junction rather than multiple ones on poles.

[IndieSinger]

Also, if there've already suspended road/place signs on a gantry over the road, it's cheaper just to attach the lights. The cables are all up there too, so there's no underground digging and continual maintainance is easier and cheaper.

[lisa74656]

and why don't they go amber before they go green??

[napster2003]

How come you can turn right in some states aswell?