Rory dug up a bit more information about the lights and it seems they are mainly manufactured by Chinese companies, including Shenzhen Yuhong Electronics and Hepol Electric Enterprises. This likely explains why the Chinese have been the earliest and most widespread adopter of the lights, although they can be found on most continents by now.

It is a curious phenomenon, and I have wondered about the psychology involved. Why does the crosser not take advantage of the walk signal? Why does a red light suddenly relieve him of his paralysis? Why does he risk crossing just as vehicles could mow him down?

Just a random thought… While behind the wheel the other day, I was thinking about motor racing and how much more interesting it was to watch cars race on a complex circuit than a simple oval. I then thought of my technique of slowing down well in advance of a red traffic light so as to pass the red light phase in motion rather than standing still, which often allows me get a jump start on the traffic that has come to a complete stop (not that that’s really important!).

And then it hit me: how cool would it be to put a traffic light on a Formula One race track? It would introduce a whole new strategic element, much like the existing debacle on when, and how often, to stop in the pits to change tires or refuel. It might even level the playing field a little. And it would lead to some terrific action: cars would essentially have to do drag-racing starts every time they had been brought to a halt by the light. Some courses would have more than one light, and the duration of each light phase could vary from light to light, or even randomly.