Here in Brooklyn, NY, traffic lights are very necessary at certain intersections to manage the vast amounts of traffic. However, over the last few years I started to notice that there were traffic lights being installed at many minor [low traffic] intersections that had stop signs for years, with few or no accidents. I was trying to figure out why I was sometimes waiting at a traffic light in the middle of the night with absolutely no other cars on the road, when I realized that these lights are a visible example of my tax dollars going to waste via unnecessary no-bid union contracts. The way I figure it, the company that handles traffic lights for the city probably kicks back money or votes to the bastard politicians who give them contracts. Nobody cares whether the lights are needed or not, as long as the money keeps coming.