Saxony is not planning any longer green phases at pedestrian lights

Saxony is not planning a general extension of the green phase at pedestrian traffic lights. "Extending the turnaround time at traffic lights practically leads to a deterioration in quality for all road users, especially pedestrians, as they initially have to wait longer for clearance," said the Ministry of Infrastructure, which is responsible for transport, in response to a query. The acceptance of the red signal decreases with increasing waiting times.

Ministry sees loss of quality for all road users

"In addition to the loss of quality for all road users, a deterioration in road safety would also be expected," argued the ministry. In individual cases, other programming of the green time is possible. However, this would have the aforementioned effects on the overall waiting times and therefore also on the permeability for all traffic. A general extension of the green phases for pedestrians would not make sense, it said.

Use of camera systems being tested

The ministry referred to tests in Germany in which cameras register whether there are still pedestrians on the crossing and the green time is therefore extended. "However, practical and legal questions still need to be clarified and future use is therefore currently not foreseeable," it concluded.

In Saxony-Anhalt, the debate about longer green phases at pedestrian lights was recently reignited. Green Party politician Cornelia Lüddemann called on the authorities to only use a walking speed of one meter per second as a basis when setting green phases. Up to now, pedestrians have generally been expected to walk at 1.2 meters per second. SPD interior politician Rüdiger Erben also assumed that this is too fast for many older pedestrians.

According to Lüddemann, it is not only older people who are at risk from green phases that are too short, but also children, people with disabilities and people with baby carriages. Saxony-Anhalt's representative body for senior citizens also wants to campaign for state-wide change.

According to the Ministry of Transport in Magdeburg, there are currently no plans to generally extend the green phases for pedestrians. However, adjustments are possible in individual cases, it said.