Characteristics of red light running violations in urban areas in Tabuk, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

•Out of forty-six signalized intersections in Tabuk, thirty-eight were included in the field survey.•This study reveals the problem of red lights running in the Saudi cities.•This study reflects the significance of the effective traffic control in intersections in controlling red light violations.•It also shows the importance of the distance to the city's center, where the number of violations increases in areas away from the city center.•A simple regression model was calibrated.

This paper aims to assess the characteristics of red light violations in Tabuk city of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The paper also analyzes the effect of intersection characteristics, such as geometric design, control system and location, on number of violations. Data on traffic characteristics and violations, intersection geometric design (road width, number of lanes, speed) were collected at 38 intersections in Tabuk using video cameras. Statistical analysis reveals that number of approaches, speed, road width, speed on cross road, and width of cross road significantly affects red light violation. Regression analysis implies that road width, red time and speed are the most important factors affecting red light violation.