Inner Sydney has 12km of cycleways to separate bikes from motor traffic and encourage more people to ride.
Many riders express frustration that bike traffic lights (lanterns) on the cycleways don’t work properly.
Frustrated riders sometimes run red lights, risking a hefty fine.
On weekdays in the city centre all bike lanterns are on automatic and don’t need to be activated.
But overnight and on weekends, and in areas away from the city centre, the lanterns need to be triggered by your bike.
How to trigger a bike lantern
On the cycleway just short of the stop line you’ll see a grid. This is the detector loop.
We’ve painted a line of diamonds in the grid to show you where to line up your front wheel to trigger a green signal.
Be aware, late arrival on the diamonds may not register until the next phase. And moving off the detector will cancel the call for green, so wait there.
Learn more about the technology used on Sydney’s bike network
Embedded content: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRkoSa9IjWU
Published 16 March 2016, updated 8 June 2018
