We seem to be way behind the times in our thinking in dealing with traffic gridlock at busy intersections.
The last time I was driving through London in the 1990s, I noted that at busy junctions, they had painted a diamond pattern in the junctions.
Anyone caught with their car in the diamond pattern after the lights turned red were photographed and received a traffic violation ticket.
This would prevent the ignorant drivers who enter the junction to turn when it is obvious they can not exit and then hold up the first two or three vehicles from entering the junction while they complete their turn after the lights turn red.
Also, on many junctions, there were no right turns (left turns in Canada) permitted in junctions where there was no filter lane.
Instead, one (in Canada) would have to take the next right and go round the block to get left instead of blocking one of the traffic lanes until a gap appears in the traffic.
Just a couple of common sense ideas that have been around a long time.
Brian Sutch
Vernon