If you’re driving through the state of Ohio in two months time and see someone running through a red light, it won’t necessarily be because he’s breaking the law or looking to get in trouble.
In fact, this new law (taking effect in March) is about allowing drivers who believe the traffic light is malfunctioning, to legally drive through it. As you can imagine, there are plenty of people who see a problem with that, as reported by 10tv.
According to the Police, the law doesn’t take into account drivers who drive past the stop bar that triggers the traffic light to change, so those drivers might think the light isn’t working and proceed to run it.
“You’re taking your life into your own hands if you think you can blow through the intersection and not get into a crash,” said Officer James Triplett, while Sergeant Mark Mosser of the Reynoldsburg Police Motor Unit added that “anytime you are introducing another vehicle that’s going to cross lanes of travel when someone else has the right of way, the potential for crashes is significant.”
This new law is similar to one that was passed in Pennsylvania and about two dozen other states – where motorcyclists complained about traffic sensors not responding to their bikes.
Driving instructor Charlie Allen said that he already doesn’t like the new law seen as how there are plenty of bad drivers on the roads to begin with.
“I’ve seen drivers running red lights. Running stop signs. Passing on the right. I don’t know if it’s the wisest decision, people are already in a hurry going nowhere anyway.”