Tired of hitting Raleigh’s red lights? A magic speed will have you seeing all greens.

If you’ve ever felt like the traffic floodgates miraculously opened for you as you drove through Raleigh, there’s a good chance you weren’t hallucinating.

Raleigh’s traffic lights are on a sequence that is designed to help you move about town more swiftly – especially if you’re traveling a certain speed.

The timing and progression change some depending on the predominant traffic flow at a given time of the day, according to Raleigh Transportation Director Michael Moore. But generally, they are set up to let you cruise through a series of green lights.

The secret to getting around Raleigh fast is to not drive so fast, Moore says. You shouldn’t go too slow, either.

“I would say your best bet for getting through Raleigh traffic with less stress and greater ease is to drive the speed limit – or slightly less – and be mindful of others trying to do the same,” Moore said.

“Exceeding the speed limit means one will outpace the signal progression and end up racing between red lights, only to have to stop. One really doesn’t save any time under that scenario, and it only increases the potential for crashes.”

Raleigh’s traffic light system is built around the primary routes downtown, and then the other streets are prioritized into the system, Moore said, making the sequencing most evident downtown.

For example, if you come to a red light while driving through downtown on a primary street like Dawson or McDowell, it is pointless to gun it when the light turns green. Gradually accelerating to the speed limit allows time for the next light to turn green, and staying at or just below the posted speed limit will allow the green-light magic to carry on to the lights ahead.

“Dawson gets a very pronounced green band, and it is very obvious it is synchronized,” Moore said. “Fayetteville Street carries less vehicular traffic, but much more pedestrian traffic, and may not appear to be synchronized in the same way that the principal arterial streets are.”

In North Carolina, the speed limit is 35 mph inside city limits and 55 mph in rural areas, unless otherwise posted. That means Raleigh roads come with a 35-mph speed limit, unless included on the “other” list of speed limits.

This story was originally published April 3, 2018 at 12:43 PM with the headline "Tired of hitting Raleigh’s red lights? A magic speed will have you seeing all greens.."