Seen Strange Devices Above Red Lights in NJ? Here’s What They Really Do

• Seen bell-shaped devices above NJ traffic lights?
• They’re not red light cameras
• Here’s what they really do

Why are There "Bells" Above Some NJ Traffic Lights?

The next time you're driving around the great Garden State and you hit a red light, look up.

As everything around us evolves and becomes more technologically advanced, traffic lights are, too (although you might not think that's true when you sit at a red light for what seems like an eternity).

As you are looking up, you might notice what looks like bells hanging high above some red lights. What exactly do they do?

• FUN FACT: A new traffic light system at an intersection can easily cost $250,000 to $500,000!

NJ Traffic Lights: Then vs. Now

Back in the day, traffic lights were all based on time, or timers, to be more precise.

Regardless of the time of day or the amount of traffic, green lights and red lights were all of a predetermined length. That means at 3 AM, you would sit for a red light when there was no traffic, and at 3 PM, not enough traffic would get through an intersection because those timers never changed. Some old signals in some older cities are still this way (Atlantic Avenue in Atlantic City, we're lookin' at you).

Eventually, wires were buried in roads that detected traffic. When cars stopped on these wires, it told the signal there were vehicles waiting and it made the light change. Simple enough, at least until those wires broke and the road had to be dug up and repaved to fix them.

• READ MORE: Can You Legally Take Sand from a New Jersey Beach?

The Modern Solution: Cameras

Today, those wires have been replaced with this common sight -- cameras.

How They Work

Contrary to popular belief, these are not "red light cameras," but they are cameras at red lights. They do not record video, nor will they send you a ticket in the mail. These cameras detect traffic and help control the flow of an intersection based on what they see.

If they "see" a car, the light will change. When they don't see any more vehicles, the light changes back. And when they break, you just install a new camera instead of having to dig up the whole road.

Oh, and I hate to tell you, but urban legend has it that if you flash your high beams at these things, it'll make the light change. It doesn't.

• READ MORE: 14 Breathtaking Pictures from the Top of the Cape May Lighthouse

But What About Those "Bells"

These bell-looking things are cameras, too, and they're pretty cool.

They're actually cameras that point downward that can see a full 360 degrees (i.e., the entire intersection with just one camera). And they do all kinds of stuff. Traffic engineers can watch them to make sure signals are working or timed properly and some can even look for strobe lights from ambulances to make the light change.

And like before, they are not red light cameras, and you won't get a ticket in the mail.