INCENTIVIZING SPEEDING.

Two sets of rent-seekers attempt to make sense of increased deaths from drivers running red lights.

Drivers blowing through red lights killed 939 people in 2017. That's an increase of 31% from a low in 2009, when 715 people were killed.

More than half of those killed were passengers or people riding in other vehicles. About 35% were the drivers who ran the red light. Pedestrian and cyclist deaths connected to red light running represented about 5% of total deaths.

The precise reason for the jump in fatalities isn't clear. But AAA's director of traffic safety advocacy and research, Jake Nelson, says distracted driving is likely a major contributor.

"Drivers distracted on their phones, pedestrians distracted when crossing intersections, are all reasonable contributing causes to what we see the data telling us," Nelson told NPR. "But it's not the only cause."

Read on, though, and note the dog that doesn't bark.

For instance, AAA conducted a separate survey on red light running and found that about one-third of drivers who responded admitted to having sped through a red light in the past month, despite the majority of respondents saying red light running represents a serious safety concern.

"So that implies that they weren't distracted," Nelson said.

No, they were paying attention, and the technocratic fix the motor club and the public radio set comes up with, traffic light cameras, do get drivers' attention, but not in a good way.

From there, it deteriorates.

AAA says drivers should monitor "stale" green lights — those that have been green a long time as you approach the intersection. They are more likely to turn yellow as you arrive at the intersection.

For pedestrians, making sure an intersection is clear before crossing is another thing that Nelson says might seem obvious.

"If you're the first person at a red light waiting to cross an intersection when the light turns green, give yourself three seconds," he said. "It could mean the difference between life and death."

Pedestrians and cyclists should make eye contact with drivers, according to AAA, which also recommends not wearing headphones while commuting.

"If you're going to cross an intersection, for just a moment please take your face out of your phone and take those earbuds out of your years," Nelson said, "so you can protect yourself in the event that someone blows through a red light."

For "stale" green lights, substitute maltimed green lights.  These are particularly notorious in Illinois, where the sensors will finally consent to provide a green when lots of traffic has backed up, meanwhile, at the next light, the sensor notes a gap in traffic, and the green up ahead goes to yellow just as the signal you're waiting for (behind multiple other cars also waiting) goes to green, and there are lots of stretches of road around the country where the locals have learned that exceeding the speed limit by five or ten or more gets you through all the greens while the suckers who obey the speed limit get stopped at each signal.

As far as those pedestrians, if you wait three seconds and then cross, you're now at risk of someone approaching for a right turn who sees the green and not the crosswalk, or perhaps it's someone who sees a clear shot at a left turn.

That, however, is for another day, thinking about how best to mix different types of traffic on the roads.