I think the solution to this was to move from the inductive loops to cameras which detect motion (or a change of just the asphalt, or *something* -- not sure what). I can't say I've tested this, but I do think they're a lot more reliable than the loops (which I noticed would fail to pick up even a car properly sometimes). Around here (PA/NJ) it seems like they've been aggressively switching to the cameras over the last few years.

TV, being linear, forces the ads to the exclusion of anything else, which is annoying in a different way. At least they're not in your field of vision while the stuff you want to watch is happening.

This is actually becoming less true... while some networks have tact about it, many others -- Food TV and The History Channel come to mind -- throw ads for other shows, books, other various offers right over the program you're watching. While it isn't the end of the world, it's fscking annoying when they cover up [text|important details|subtitles] in the program you're watching just to sell you the host's new book... or even a video for the episode you're watching (so that's the plan)!

At least with the regular tv ads, the dvr takes care of them. I almost never watch "live" tv any more, even preferring to start watching a show after it's been on for at least 15-20 minutes just so I can FF past all the ads. When I do watch live tv, I find myself instinctively hitting that "skip 30 seconds" button, and very disappointed when it doesn't work.