218: Traffic lights in Vienna

Traffic lights (Ampel in German) are signalling devices used to control the traffic of cars, buses, trams, trains, bicycles, and pedestrians instead of using police officers!

Traffic lights are typically placed at the intersection of streets and can be in different forms, symbols, colours, arrangement, and sequence. In Vienna (Austria), the traffic lights are generally as follows:

• Cars or pedestrians
• Yellow, Flashing
• Green/Red, Non-Flashing
• Customized for specific purpose!

• Pedestrians
• Non flashing (It only flashes when the status changes)
• Red and Green
• Circular

• Pedestrians
• Pedestrians and Bicycles
• Non-Flashing (Red and Green)
• Flashing (Yellow)
• Red and Green
• Circular or arrow shape

• Cars
• Non flashing
• Red, Yellow (Amber), and Green
• Circular or arrow shape

• Bicycles Red, Non Flashing
• Red, Non Flashing
• Yellow, N
• on Flashing
• Green, Non Flashing

• Trams
• For trams (Strßenbahn/Bim/Tramway)
• x3 LEDs Horizontal: Stop (halt)
• x2 LEDs Vertical: Free (frei)

• Cars or pedestrians
• Currently, traffic lights in Vienna do not have any countdown lights.

• Pedestrians
• For blind and visually impaired pedestrians
• Activated via push button
• Beeping:
  • Slow clicking: Pedestrian light is red
  • Fast clicking : Pedestrian light is green, safe to cross

• Arrow (direction)
• Pedestrian shape
• Bicycles
• Bicycle and Pedestrian shape
• Pictograms of couples

1- Non-Flashing situation

• Red: Stop (traffic may not proceed)
• Red/Yellow: Signal is about to change (red light rule still is valid!)
• Yellow (Amber): Stop, unless it is unsafe to stop
• Green: Traffic may proceed (if the intersection or crossing is clear!)

2- Flashing situation

• Red: Traffic must not pass the stop line.
• Yellow (Amber): Traffic may proceed with caution.

• Vertically (Top: Red, Middle: Yellow, Below: Green or directional arrows)
• Horizontally (Left: Red, Middle: Yellow, Right: Green or directional arrows)

They are also installed as follows:

• Installation on poles
• Installation via harness cables