When do the Traffic Lights work off sensors and when do they work off timers?

Entirely implementation dependent.

In some cases, they will be communicating to a central control server (SCATS or Scoot being the main programmes I think) to 'know' what other lights are doing also.

That is a problem though. Plenty of drivers I observe also do same.

There really should be cameras at traffic lights that can issue fines for people breaking red lights and ignoring pedestrians at crossings when the traffic light is red - not implying you do that btw, but I do see it in Dublin.

I think the box that is marked out for bicycles to stop in - at the top of a lane- overlays sensors that were never moved when they started marking out those boxes. So late at night if a car stops literally on the stop line it will not trigger the sensor.

In a lot of European countries the traffic lights are switched to flashing ambers late at night usually between 11pm and 7am. Why can't it be the same here in Ireland. In fact I've when traffic lights are out traffic flows better than when the traffic lights are on as people use common sense instead of being told what to do.

junction at Blackrock is notorious for red lights and pedestrian sequence very early morning, nobody around, no pedestrians or traffic and I’ve seen it go thru full sequence. Again just encourages breaking law while proceeding cautiously

There’s no way to tell if a sensor is working or not. The presence of a working sensor doesn’t mean that your light will immediately change to green. Most junctions (in Dublin, at least) operate on a combination of sensors and timers, even at night.

There's a big difference between the people going through red traffic lights after they come on, some people long after, and someone at 4am who stops and checks it's safe to proceed. Yeah both are breaking the law but the punishment shouldn't be the same. It's even more fun for bikers as sometimes we can't trigger the sensors so have to either wait for a car to turn up or break the light.

To have red light cameras we should also bring in flashing amber on appropriate junctions. I was in a small city in Hungary recently and they had flashing amber on most traffic lights after 9pm but major junctions still had the traffic lights functioning.

But at the end of the day the problem on our roads is a complete lack of enforcement of our laws, not a lack of laws.

That doesn't need AI, it has existed for decades already. That is what all the sensors are for.

You don't have to tum off the pedestrian crossing when you use flashing amber for cars.

BTW where is this happening as we don't currently have flashing amber junctions at night?

Each set of lights could be completely different.

Are you for **** real? If I've been waiting for my light to turn green (I don't break red lights and only a narcissistic **** tool does so unless it's not for a legitimate reason like a time critical a life or death situation, for example) and it does so, of course I will have been observing my surroundings but if some idiot has decided that his/her time is more important than mine and has decided to disregard the red light, of course I will be blasting my horn and gesticulating at said driver…..or drivers! You make it out as if I would be a bad person by doing so when in fact I'm in defence mode because of the offensive driving that has delayed my progression of my drive. Red light breakers should be burned at the stake…….I'm not being literal but you get my analogy, I hope.

I don't get angry easily, it takes the actions of someone to say or do something ludicrously stupid to anger me……something like being called stupid for being angered by a driver not stopping for a red light, when I've been given the green light to proceed if safe to do so. The horn is not just used for giving out to other people, did you know? It can be used to alert other road users of a hazard - a car driving through a red light, for example.

I've been driving over 24 years, I've had two minor RTC's, I was 100% not at fault in both cases. I've never got any penalty points or any fines, for that matter. Well, apart from a parking ticket in Mullingar earlier this year when the warden must have mistaken my commercial car derived van for a private vehicle. The warden clearly didn't bother to look at my tax disc.

I'm courteous on the roads, with people driving in a proper manner, of course. I drive up and down the N4 to the midlands regularly and whilst I always drive as fast as I can legally drive, sometimes a car behind will want to drive faster so when I see a safe stretch of road, I'll move over slightly into the hard shoulder (this is a single carriageway N-Road, not a motorway, to be clear) to assist the driver to pass. I don't agree with the other driver breaking the Rules of the Road by speeding but I'm not the police either. Another thing that I often encounter on the N4 west of Mullingar (where it goes from dual to single carriageway) is a driver in front who is clearly using his/her phone. Sometimes you can actually see the the person using it but it's almost always combined with erratic speeds, often generally slow speeds and erratic driving in general…….a classic case of driving without due care & consideration. If I do pass, so as to proceed at the signposted speed, I will usually give a toot of the horn as I pass to let the driver know that there's a hazard passing by them, as it's clear from the driver's behaviour that the he/she is very much not aware of the surroundings. Last thing I would want is for the driver to look up from the phone, get a fright at the sight of me passing by "unexpectedly" and possibly lose control of the vehicle.

I'll use bus lanes that are not in use any time I can, although I've noticed there are more and bus lanes in Dublin going from part time to full time 24 hour, the R139 between the Malahide Road and Donaghmede roundabout being a good example. I last drove that road a month or two ago and it was the usual 07:30 - 19:00 time on it but two evenings ago when I drove it, it had become 24 hour. I believe there are some 24 hour bus services using this road now so it makes sense in that regard.