闯黄灯是否是违法行为?

It's common nowadays in many Chinese cities for a driver to receive a fine after running a yellow light. Shu Jiangrong is one of them, but what put him in the spotlight was his appeal against local traffic police who fined him, because he believes the fine has no legal basis. Li Jv, a lawyer with the Beijing-based Zhong Yin Law Firm, has expressed sympathy for the driver, believing the court judgment is somewhat inappropriate.

"If there was a traffic law saying cars that fail to pass the STOP line on a yellow traffic light are prohibited from continuing to advance, then a fine is reasonable. But there is no such law."

Yan Xuedong, a professor with School of Traffic and Transportation of Beijing Jiaotong University, says drivers approaching a yellow light often hesitate to make decisions and they should be punished differently to those that run red lights.

"On the basis of science, it's very difficult for a driver never to pass a yellow light. The distance a car runs before braking is linked to driving speed and the length of time a driver spends on judging the situation. Another factor to consider is driver reaction time. On average, it would take a driver one second to respond to a situation on the road. So the distance a car runs within that second also contributes to the distance a car runs beyond the STOP line."

A taxi driver surnamed Liu who has a dozen years' driving experience also thinks the punishment of a driver who failed to brake his car before crossing the STOP line is improper because a rear-end collision would possibly take place if the driver braked too soon.

"Take me as an example: though I'm a professional driver, I can't guarantee to brake my car properly every time before it crosses the line. I think it's necessary to look at the time it takes the car to cross the stop line, especially if drivers are fined after running a yellow light. If I brake suddenly and the cars behind still run at their usual speed, a rear-end collision would possibly happen, leading to greater losses."

In fact, according to the Regulation on the Implementation of the Law on Road Traffic Safety, cars that have already passed the STOP line on a yellow light are allowed to go on running. But the regulation fails to clarify any punishment on a driver who runs a yellow light.

At present, the case, along with many other similar cases, has aroused great concern from the Ministry of Public Security, which is considering issuing more detailed and clearly-defined criteria on ways to handle drivers who run the yellow lights.

For CRI, I'm Xu Fei.