Are We Coming To The End Of Traffic Lights: "Traffic Lights Are A 150-Year-Old Technology Originally Conceived For Horse Carriages"

Audi’s New Technology Is the Beginning of the End of Traffic Lights (+Video)

Cars could soon be crisscrossing in front of one another while barely slowing down

Michael Reilly | August 17, 2016

Audi has announced it is rolling out a feature in some of its new vehicles that allows them to communicate with traffic lights. It’s a neat trick that customers might like: they can watch as a timer counts down until a red light turns green, or the system can warn drivers approaching a green light that it’s going to change, and advise them to start braking.
It’s more than just a gimmick, though. The death of traffic lights has been predicted for some time, and Audi’s move is the first sign that their decline might come quickly.

"North East Ambulance Service patient transport service vehicles are the first to be fitted with pioneering technology which links in-vehicle communication systems directly with Newcastle's Urban Traffic Management Control (UTMC) centre." (Gadget which turns all traffic lights green trialled in UK. The pioneering technology is being tested ahead of trials of driverless vehicles. August 19, 2016) Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/11512274/Gadget-which-turns-all-traffic-lights-green-trialled-in-UK.html

"Honda is testing a system that allows cars to communicate with traffic lights, which could improve the flow of traffic in big cities." (Honda's traffic light information system turns cars into backseat drivers. March 31, 2014) Source: http://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/honda-vehicle-to-vehicle-communication-system-syncs-cars-with-traffic-lights/

<more at https://www.technologyreview.com/s/602198/audis-new-technology-is-the-beginning-of-the-end-of-traffic-lights/; related articles and links: http://senseable.mit.edu/light-traffic/ (Traffic lights are a 150-year-old technology originally conceived for horse carriages. Will they survive the advent of autonomous vehicles?" 2016) and https://www.technologyreview.com/s/601152/chatty-cars-are-getting-out-on-the-road/ (Chatty Cars Are Getting Out on the Road. Car-to-car communication, which may reduce traffic accidents and congestion, is about to undergo testing on roadways in Sunnyvale, California. March 29, 2016)>