Sir, - Brendan MacMahon's interesting letter (September 24th)about the apparently haphazard programming of traffic lights in Dublin misses one important point. The sheer number of traffic lights in Dublin makes "surfing the lights" impossible.
In this city, almost every little lane and alleyway has its own set of lights onto the main road. It has to have; otherwise people trying to get into the main flow of traffic would die of thirst and starvation behind the wheel waiting for other drivers to cede them road space.
The trouble with traffic flow in Dublin is not traffic lights, but rather the school of driving which teaches that the correct pedal to cover when approaching a closing gap is the throttle, not the brake. - Yours, etc.,
David Smith, Harmonstown Road, Dublin 5.