Banning Right Turns on Red Just One Step Toward Vision Zero

Experts caution that blanket bans on right turns on red make only a slight contribution to reducing fatal crashes, and other interventions are needed to bring down traffic fatalities.

1 minute read

October 8, 2024, 6:00 AM PDT

By Diana Ionescu @aworkoffiction


Red car turning right on red light.

Right turns on red became popular in the United States during the energy crisis in the 1970s after Congress enacted the Energy Policy and Conservation Act. | Lost_in_the_Midwest / Adobe Stock

Banning right turns on red can reduce vehicle-pedestrian conflict, but “may not substantially address road safety challenges,” reports Michael Brady in Smart Cities Dive.

“Indeed, research shows that allowing right-turn-on-red leads to more conflicts between cars and pedestrians. For instance, permitting right-turn-on-red led to a 43% to 107% increase in pedestrian crashes and a 72% to 123% rise in cyclist crashes, according to a 1982 study by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.” However, these crashes tend to be minor and not a major contributor to traffic fatalities. Between 1982 and 1992, just 0.2% of roadway fatalities occurred at intersections with right turns on red allowed.

Experts suggest taking a more targeted approach by banning right turns only at particularly dangerous intersections to “get the most benefit at the lowest political and economic cost.” 

Ultimately, right-turn bans must fit within a “bigger policy framework” that includes “[l]owering posted vehicle speed limits, instating traffic-calming measures, reducing permissive left turns and improving pedestrian and cycling infrastructure.”

Friday, October 4, 2024 in Smart Cities Dive

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