How being a distracted driver can make you think you have a green light when, in reality, you’re headed for one expensive and possibly injurious collision.
Saratoga County commuter and Redditor /u/DylanSpaceBean shared headshaking dashcam footage from earlier in January (Jan 28, 2026) to the /r/IdiotsInCars subreddit showing a distracted driver mistake turners going next to him as his cue to go when, in reality, he’d begin to run a red light, instead.
Check out the near-miss dashcam video below with the original Reddit thread linked here.
The incident happened at the intersection of US-50 and Old Gick Rd. in Saratoga Springs (Exact location on Google Maps linked here.)
As the dashcam shows, OP is stopped, headed northbound on US-50.
To his left is a driver in a Ford Maverick, also pointed straight through Route 50.
As is per usual with the light cycle, turners to the left of OP and the driver in the Maverick get the green.
Likely distracted, the driver in the Maverick mistakes the turners as his cue to go, too, when, in reality, he was about to run straight into a t-bone collision of his own doing.
Whether saved by OP honking, his Ford’s Automatic Emergency Braking Feature, just plain ol’ looking up, or a combination of all three, the distracted driver stops himself from continuing.
You can hear OP explaining to whoever he was talking to over speaker just what went down.
“I’m never on my phone, but I have done this once or twice on autopilot. Just staring off into the distance, waiting for the green, see green out of the corner of my eye, let off the brak,e only to double check and slam on the brakes. Right up there with the “how the hell did I get here” moments on my way to or from work because I don’t remember the drive,” one of the top comments from /u/Grover786 reads.
“lol the reverse of shame,” /u/shewy92 added.
In Saratoga Springs, NY (and all of New York State), running a red light is a moving violation that adds points to your driver’s license. If an officer issues a red‑light ticket, it typically results in 3 points on your driving record under New York’s DMV point system. Accumulating too many points — generally 11 or more within 18 months (and under new 2026 rules, 10 or more within 24 months) — can lead to a license suspension and other penalties. (dmv.ny.gov)
