The first traffic light appeared in 1868, long before cars were common! It was installed in London, England, outside the Houses of Parliament to manage horse-drawn carriages and pedestrians. Invented by John Peake Knight, a railway engineer, the system used gas-lit signals with red and green lights, operated manually by a police officer. Red meant stop, and green meant go, just like today, but the lights were raised and lowered by hand using a lever.

This early traffic light wasn’t a big success—it exploded just a month later in January 1869, injuring the officer operating it due to a gas leak. The idea was shelved for decades until electric traffic lights came along in the 1910s, with the first one in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1914. Modern traffic lights owe their start to Knight’s invention, which was inspired by railway signals. Today, there are over 300,000 traffic lights in the U.S. alone, keeping roads safe. This small invention took a big bite out of chaotic city streets, even if it started with a bang.

Next time you’re at a red light, think of its explosive 1868 debut—it’s a history bite worth sharing. Share this with your friends and come back for more on Bitefact!