Posted on 12/11/2009 9:18:01 AM PST by jpl
Edited on 12/11/2009 9:35:36 AM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP)
(Excerpt) Read more at fox6now.com ...
They did think about it! More union jobs...every city now needs to hire additional union members to clear the snow out of the traffic lights.
Stupid, unenlightened, mouth breathing, joe-six pack, Walmart shoppers are soooo stupid! (Crash!)
(upside down dead superior progressive that got hit at the snow covered light)
“—”
.O.
x?x
LOL.... my gawd! Do I have to tell those northerners how to do everything... :-)
Just put a little heater on it, and only have it switch on during precipitation and freezing weather...
I mean, could it be simpler? They won’t have a whole lot of days of the year where they’ll even have to have it on... :-)
The big advantage to LEDs is not so much the power but that they take less maintenance (changing bulbs). The problem with the ice could easily be solved with a thermostatically controlled heater.
Like fire hydrants, traffic lights need to be designed to function in any weather (hydrants in areas that freeze automatically drain when closed.)
The lens heater is a good idea to melt snow. While the incandescents melt the snow anyway, in much of the country, like my part of Texas, that function is necessary maybe eight hours a year. The lower energy consumption is a BIG DEAL on things like traffic lights that are supposed to function 24/7/365.
Just as most people will insist that GREEN means GO NO MATTER WHAT.
“BTW, is your screen name a reference to the Rush song?”
Yes, and also to the fact that I live relatively near to Toronto now.
Sounds like a "shovel-ready project" to me. More jobs saved or created on TOTUS' watch.
Cool. I am a huge Rush fan (saw them probably 5 times in the 80’s) and love that song. The drum solo from Exit Stage Left is a classic. Also a big fan of Neal Peart’s books.
Very good.....like the way you think Joe !
Of course it could be. What would that do to the supposed energy savings I wonder.
"Of course it could be. What would that do to the supposed energy savings I wonder."
Saving electricity and labor costs on a permanent basis, yet having to equal the warmth of the old fashioned bulbs on snow days in a $400,000.00 outdoor fixture that is electric.
I think that modern science can handle the challenge and still save a fortune in electricity and labor costs.
Not yet, but I'm working on a break-through idea for a solar cell that works at night (hint: it uses "black light!").
Regards,
GtG
The traffic lights weren't out, they were just covered so that they couldn't be seen, and since I live in a snow area I know that those lights may not be blocked out on all sides. Some people may have had the green and could see the green, but those who had the red couldn't see the red.
LOL!
“”Of course it could be. What would that do to the supposed energy savings I wonder.”
Saving electricity and labor costs on a permanent basis, yet having to equal the warmth of the old fashioned bulbs on snow days in a $400,000.00 outdoor fixture that is electric.
I think that modern science can handle the challenge and still save a fortune in electricity and labor costs.”
An electric heater would have almost no effect on efficiency since it would only come on when the temperature was below freezing and it would only have to keep it above 32 degrees.
This little lesson confirms the law of unintended consequences. On a much larger scale the same law will apply to “cap and go to China” and Obamacare. The unintended consequences will be disastrous.
anyone else want to join me in predicting that the savings from the bulbs will never materialize? Whatever they “save” in electricity will be more than offset by higher costs in replacing them, problems like those cited in the article, etc... When do we reach the tipping point? Little by little, one “high efficiency traffic light” at a time, we are getting there.
They could have saved as much money, as well as the cost of the new lights, if they would eliminate about 75% of the traffic lights in the first place. There are way too many traffic lights in many areas. Take a drive up State Road in Parma, Ohio and on into Cleveland. You will stop an average of every 1000 feet.
No
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