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Slugs blamed for broken traffic lights [1]

['Rob Beschizza']

Date: 2026-10-01  

Newly-installed traffic lights at a busy corner in Stretford, England, keep failing and leaving motorists fightened and confused. Part of a £17.6m (about $24m) redevelopment of the town center, the new lights have gone out three times, reports the Manchester Evening News, a pattern one local councillor described as "very odd." A culprit, though, has been identified: slugs.

More than a year after the first fault, the councillor finally received a – bizarre – explanation. Transport for Greater Manchester apologised for not fully investigating the issue initially. The letter from TFGM read: "The review found that, with the exception of one outage caused by a road traffic collision, the faults shared the same underlying cause. Slugs had entered the signal controller and caused short circuits.

The signal control system, housed at ground level, was completely sealed against intrusion and no further outages have since occurred.

It's not the first time slugs have made a mess of traffic lights in the U.K. In 2023, an "invasion" of them reportedly took out roadside electrical systems in Wales, leading a local authority to "set up a 'slug squad' team of engineers" to secure similar sites. Slugs—and other beasties such as spiders and mice—are attracted to the warmth inside electrical fittings close to the ground. But slugs are "the worst," related Wales Online.

In a video posted on South Gloucestershire Council's StreetCare page on Facebook, a maintenance engineer said: "Slugs are a big problem on all sites that haven't been sealed correctly or are breaking down. They just short across terminals and cause major problems. Slugs are the worst." Another engineer added: "If there is a little hole anywhere, they will come in. Where they are getting in, you can reseal and make sure it's all watertight so nothing gets in. When you've got preventative maintenance, you get less (sic) faults. It's better in-house because you tend to spend more time doing it properly."

Here's a spokesperson from Transport for Greater Manchester, on their slug situation: "Recurring issues with traffic signals at the Robin Hood crossroads in Stretford were investigated and it was identified that slugs were entering the signal controller, causing short circuits. Work was undertaken to address the problem, no further issues have been reported, and we will continue to monitor the situation."

Previously:

• Mollusk biologist describes how slugs make babies

• Watch a slug encounter a droplet of water

• These slugs arguing over food is the cutest territorial fight you'll see …

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