Trilidon

First off I said traffic light, not automatic traffic light, either way your wrong.


While the black Garrett A. Morgan did submit and receive a patent for a
traffic signal in 1923, he did not invent the traffic light. The first
"traffic light" was created in London in 1868, used to control the traffic
of pedestrians and buggies. It was illuminated by gas using green and red
colors, and was manually operated by policemen who turned a lever to reveal
the appropriate color to the appropriate lane of traffic. Railroads were
already using a lighting system as well. It was a police officer, William
Potts, who first improved on the gas-light invention, which required a
police officer to operate. William Potts recognized the need for something
better when he observed that police officers were spending much of their
time directing traffic after the invention of the automobile. He created an
electric lighting system using red, amber, and green to control automobile
traffic in Detroit. It was first used in 1920 and was the herald of the
modern traffic light. William Potts was not black. Garrett A. Morgan's
traffic light of 1923 did not contribute significantly to the traffic light
of today, but resembled train switching lights already in use.