If everyone started driving the moment they saw the light turn green, the collective traffic would move forward like a train. Granted, there needs to be a buffer zone between each car. But that zone often gets diminished because everyone wants to drive until they have to stop behind someone, rather than driving while looking ahead at the traffic sequence.

The tortoise/hare metaphor is relevant here: sometimes slowing down without braking within a couple hundred yards of an intersection can get you through quicker (and use less energy). The idea is to avoid complete stops (sometimes inevitable).

But there are attitudes in mental software that must be modified. "I'm in a hurry and I have to get there RIGHT NOW." "Everyone is in MY way."

Individualism can be an inefficiency of the collective, and that will be a tough lesson to teach.