I have never lived in a city with so many malfunctioning traffic lights. About every 3 weeks I run into them. Most seem to be due to power outages. As someone else stated, solar charges and battery backups seem like a good idea. Not cheap but they could save lives. So I think it's worth it. You don't have to install them ALL at once.

The driver of the mini van is a personal friend whom I have known since we were 5. I assure you that she was aware of the semi. Be cautious to cast your judgment without facts. If the semi was coming as quickly as sleepy2 stated, she had no reason to feel it was unsafe to go through the intersection. It can be difficult to tell how fast another vehicle is moving unless you stare at it a bit. Do you stare at other vehicles before going through an intersection? I don't. I glance in each direction and move through unless there is obvious reason not too. Regardless, this was a traffic accident and we should just be grateful no one was injured seriously.

I thank God my friend and her boys made it out of this safely.

the van was stopped the person to the left waved them thru...the truck driver (at least 50mph) didn't see the '4-way' stop and never thought to stop. The truck driver never got out of his truck to check on the kids in the van.

I would place the blame on the smaller vehicle, something must have taken her attention from noticing a large vehicle? It is much more difficult to stop a loaded truck than it is to stop a minivan.

I just wish people would stop depending totally on technologies in providing "safety"! Use your eyes and full attention on the road.

Safety begins with the person steering the wheel!

Good thing the child is okay. Maybe the driver took a vow to be far more careful driver, at least I hope so!

"Tracy police officers said when a traffic signal is not working the intersection becomes a four-way stop and drivers should be cautious when driving through the area."

CN

I passed by this accident shortly after it happened. I was trying to figure out how the two vehicles could have it. The van was crushed on the driver's side. The big rig was damaged at the front and was clearly going south on Grant Line as it was over the center line. Based on what I saw, I think the minivan was taking a left out of the Costco exit. The big rig either did not stop or the minivan tried to pull out and 'beat' the big rig.

Yeah, we got passes once we exited. The managers looked super stressed. It was odd seeing the whole theater exit out the doors. Lots more people there on a Monday afternoon than I thought there would be.

I don't think right-of-way is meaningless, but I do agree that if a semi was on the other side of the intersection, I'd be watching it very carefully.

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I'm sure they would give you a free pass since you didn't see the whole flick.

My point with regards to the van is that right of way is meaningless facing a vehicle 10 times larger than you approaching the intersection. (regardless of fault)

Who is to say the Big Rig stopped at all? I'd hold off on judgement until the results are in.

On another note, I was in the theater when the power went out. That stunk. Guess I'll have to wait until Toy Story 3 comes out on DVD to find out how it ends...

Obviously the big rig has the right of way.

Especially if one is in a minivan.

thankfully no one was injured.

Wow, that's impressive. Even if you are 'driving distracted' - which goes against common sense and should be illegal - how can you possibly come into contact with a large semi? Tracy police dept should come up with a an award of some kind. Separately, we were eating at IHOP at the exact moment when the power went out, but luckily our food was served about the same time. Anyone know WHY the power went out only in north tracy?

Ok, can we say driving 101. Besides, how fast is a semi from a stop sign compared to a minivan. I don't think it's hard to see who was trying to beat the semi.Just my 2 cents>

Thanks JimHilson and mnwild! Stay cool!

seems to me that stoplights in sunny areas like Tracy ought to have those little solar panels on top and run off of the sun whenever possible...use purchased electricity as a backup source instead of a primary. If cities invested in this...there wouldn't be flashing signals like Mtn House has had forever...

just a thought...but the more little thing like this we do...the more impact it makes. If you pick up every dime you find on the ground, eventually you have picked up a dollar...little things add up.

It'll be interested to find out just who wasn't paying attention. Sounds like one or both vehicles just didn't look at the light...unfortunate mistake, but we are all human.

LAM75, many jurisdictions battle with the decision to or not to have officers at dark intersections and to or not to put out temporary stop signs while the lights are out.

CA Vehicle Code says treat an intersection as a 4 way stop if the lights are out. If there's an accident, the responsibility falls on the drivers involved. If an officer directs traffic and an accident occurs, then the parties involved usually "blame" the officer and go after the City's "deep pockets" ($$$$). Same for temporary stop signs. If they're put out, 5 minutes later the lights come back on, and there's an accident before the stop signs are removed, the City once again gets the "blame".

In the Bay Area city I worked for 18 years it took over 3 years, lots of staff time and plenty of attorney input before a policy was developed that directed all City staff to NOT put out temporary stop signs or direct traffic. However, the City to the north of us had officers carry stop signs in the trunk of their cars in order to put them out while the officers were directing traffic at dark intersections. It's a "damned if you do and damned if you don't" situation.

The answer is No. The police department doesn't have the manpower to do traffic intersection control just because there is a power failure. As the article states, it becomes a four way stop and remains a controlled intersection by that fact. People need to learn how to drive properly and remember the rules when signals are out or an emergency vehicle is coming down the street in ANY direction. (Pull over and STOP!)

LOL, wow. Can you say four way stop?? AND, AND how do you not see a semi truck and not be just a little more cautious, especially if there is a child in the car?! Someone was obviously not paying attention or they thought their mini van was a fast racing machine to try to go past that semi... lol

I find it hard to believe we need a cop to direct traffic just because a light is out. Of course I also find it hard to believe somebody got in a wreck because of that. If the light is out, treat it as a four-way stop. It shouldnt be any big deal. The cause of the accident was not a darkened traffic light, it was a bad driver.

I'm just wondering this. Is there an amount of time the power needs to be out until a traffic patrol man comes out to give signals?