Invention of The Traffic Light
Peake Knight is credited with inventing the original traffic light in 1868.
In 1866, a year in which 1102 people were killed and 1334 injured on roads in London, John Peake Knight proposed a signalling system based on railway signals.
This was not the traffic light we know now, but was a revolving gas-powered lantern with a red and a green light. Knight's invention was similar to the railway signals of the time. The traffic light was originally placed near London's House of Commons, at the intersection of Great George and Bridge Streets (SW1). However, the lights exploded during use in 1869 and were removed by 1870.
In 1910, Earnest Sirrine improved the light by adding automatics. He also changed the red and green lights to words that read proceed and stop.
In 1912, Lester Wire opted to go back to the red and green lights. However, this time, electric lights were used instead of the original gas-powered lanterns.
A memorial plaque to Peake Knight's invention can be seen at 12 Bridge Street, Westminster, the corner building close to where the original traffic lights would have been erected. Minister for Roads and Road Safety, Baroness Hayman, unveiled the plaque on 4 March 1998.
Read more about this topic: J. P. Knight
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