Now Illegal to Run a Yellow Light in China

As a result of new rules being put into effect January 1st in China making it illegal to drive through a yellow traffic light, protest have started to spring up over the last few days. According to Bloomberg reports, even though the law was created to try and reduce accidents in major cities, this law is understandably unpopular with some member of the Chinese public. Opponents say that this rule will be impossible to enforce because drivers won’t have enough time to brake.

yellow traffic light

In addition to this new rule, penalties for breaking traffic rules grow steeper. Drivers face six demerit points for disobeying signals where they previously stood to gather three. Licenses will be suspended with the accumulation of twelve demerits, or only running two yellow lights.

A commentary published by the Chinese Communist Youth Party says that these new rules will most likely make traffic worse since it will scare drivers into slowing down. On the other side of the argument, according to the World Health Organization, estimates suggest that there are over 250,000 traffic-related deaths every year in China making it the leading cause of death for people between the ages of 15 and 44 years old.