In order to be able to prove that road users have committed a red light violation, precise documentation of the course of the offense is required. In order for a red light violation to occur, the driver must have entered the area protected by the traffic signal system when the red light signal was valid and visible to him. Anyone who crosses the stop line when the green light is green, but then has to wait between the stop line and the traffic lights due to traffic jams and only enters the protected area when the traffic light is already red, is committing a red light violation that is threatened with a driving ban. In fact, there are also legally binding judgments to the contrary, which do not penalize at all for crossing the stop line during the green phase and due to monitoring systems being triggered due to backlogs, or which only punish them very mildly (crossing the stop line/not clearing the intersection). If you simply crossed the stop line when the light was red, but stopped before the start of the traffic signal protection area, this is simply a stop line violation, which usually results in far less serious sanctions.

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In addition, the duration of the red phase that had already elapsed at the time of the offense must be documented in order to be able to prove that a serious red light violation was committed (the red phase had already lasted longer than one second) and to impose correspondingly more severe sanctions. The times must be given in 1/100 seconds. The duration of the previous yellow phase is also relevant, as this significantly influenced the driver's decision to continue driving.

In addition to “speeding,” “not keeping a safe distance” and “calling on a cell phone while driving a vehicle,” “running a red light” is one of the most common offenses in moving traffic; there are currently around 4,220 on Germany's roads (2014). Permanently installed speed cameras (approx. 4,175 of them with angle measurement). In the case of stationary and mobile monitoring, the penalties or fines depend on how long the yellow/red light signal was displayed when driving over the road and whether the offense of endangering other road users (possibly resulting in an accident) was fulfilled.

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If you are accused of a red light violation or have been wrongly caught speeding, then call our specialist law firm and arrange an appointment for advice or for your defense. In particular, people who need their driver's license every day for professional reasons should not hesitate to immediately take action against the accusation of a red light violation with a competent lawyer.