I gotten so frustrated that while I am doing some of my part in saving the world & lessening traffic jams (sure there is more, but here I do not need to list them all) that when I come to an intersection with traffic lights & crosswalk lights, telling you when it is safe for you to cross, that I have to wait forever to right away to use the crosswalk! The lights are setup to give the BLANKING automobiles the a long time to cross or turn, before I am allowed to use the crosswalk or just the intersection, without a crosswalk! Given what my riding does for the Earth & All Living Beings & decreasing traffic, all automobiles should instantly have to come to a stop/LIGHTS TURN RED & wait for me!
Of course if we all had Scandinavian style whole roadway or at least completely protected & separated cycle lanes, than this would a much less of a problem.
I use myself as an specific example for all cyclist. Imagine all cyclist have the same problem.
After posting exchanges, I thought of another parts to add to my idea (when former roadways have been turned into restricted to only all <including bicyclists & excluding all motorized vehicles> pedestrians roadways)-
Yes, the rules/laws are created so that if there are no traffic at all & red light (in the pedestrian or pedestrians direction), then it is legal for them to cross the roadway(s) against the red light. Not just at the intersection(s) either, Illegal Jaywalking should only be when there are traffic/like Frogger video game.
&
If any pedestrian(s) come-up to an intersection(s) at more than one-direction, not only do the automobile or automobiles have wait as the traffic lights go from green-yellow-red (or the at stops sign or signs or nothing at all the pedestrian go first), but if there are more than 1-pedestrian, then all the pedestrians go first, in all directions & at the same time.
Example- pedestrians (including bicyclists) are in the South, North, East & West directions & arrive before/same time/shortly after the automobile(s), then all the pedestrians go at the same time, as the traffic lights, for automobile(s), go from Green-Yellow-Red. I cannot see how if the other part of the idea is okay that these parts would be a problem.
“Each stop is like another 100m travel.” That is a joke right? There is no distance added, very little time added for pushing a button, for bicyclist. By the way, you have read that what I suggested was automatically, after activated, going from Green-Yellow-Red. Automobiles would have to have time to come to a stop. Going from Green to Red would be a safety issue for automobiles & bicyclists crossing.
No joke. It's a fact of physics, explained in https://www.camcycle.org.uk/magazine/newsletter46/article9/
I was agreeing with you that the Green-Amber-Red sequence should be triggered by approach sensors. This is called "anticipatory greens" in the UK.
The other problem with beg buttons is that once they're installed, it only takes one motoring supremacist to lengthen the delay and keep active travellers waiting so long that the light basically becomes irrelevant because there will be a gap where you can cross before the lights ever stop motorists. Nearly all crossings near me are configured that way. Only two sets ever change quicker. Another one is meant to but never does for me.