200k Flemish drivers can turn traffic lights green

How the System Works and What’s New

• Many note that traffic‑actuated lights using inductive loops or radar are decades old; the Flemish system mainly adds app‑based prediction on top of existing “smart” infrastructure.
• Clarified model: navigation apps share approaching vehicles’ positions (and sometimes next turn) so controllers can turn green before cars, bikes or ambulances arrive, smoothing flow rather than just reacting at the stop line.
• Several posters stress this is a protocol integrated into existing apps, not a standalone “traffic light app” that drivers actively fiddle with.

Cost, Complexity, and Alternatives

• Supporters argue app integration is cheaper and easier to retrofit than digging up roads for more loops or cameras, and can be upgraded via a small box at the light.
• Skeptics see it as over‑engineered and fragile over a 20‑year lifecycle, citing IoT products that break when networks or apps disappear.
• Alternatives proposed:
  • Better use of existing loop/IR/camera sensors.
  • Turning or flashing lights off at night with yield/stop signs.
  • Wider use of roundabouts, which self‑balance flow and reduce crashes in many contexts.
• Some question the claimed long‑range prediction: one commenter familiar with Flanders says current practice is ~1 minute ahead and still mostly loop‑driven.

Privacy and Data Concerns

• Strong thread on privacy: continual sharing of location and route intent with government and commercial apps is seen as intrusive, especially when data can reveal origins/destinations and emergency‑vehicle movements.
• Emergency services themselves reportedly balked at similar systems over concerns about tracking and potential misuse (e.g., criminals predicting police/EMS positions).
• Others counter that governments can already track phones via networks, and prefer state access over big‑tech data mining.

Equity, Commercial Influence, and “Pay to Play”

• Concern that only users of certain commercial apps gain priority, disadvantaging others and creating a de‑facto “pay to win” mobility layer.
• Worry about private firms effectively influencing public infrastructure and monetizing government‑backed incentives with little transparency.
• A minority think this is “obviously good”: worst case it behaves like current dumb lights; best case reduces waiting, fuel use, and stop‑and‑go traffic.

Cyclists, Pedestrians, and Usability

• Frustration that many sensor‑based systems ignore cyclists, forcing them to rely on cars or “beg buttons.”
• Some cities report good results with bike‑targeted detection (induction tuned for bikes, radar, or warm‑body sensors) and even bike‑priority apps.
• Multiple commenters emphasize that any system must avoid requiring manual phone interaction while driving.