Frank Zappa, one time resident of the RL Chelsea Hotel may have done that song as a foreshadowing of the Virtual Hotel Chelsea sim...
It was asked if the street lights change at all... I can bear witness to the fact that no, no they don't. Out of curiosity, I stood out in the empty street for about half an hour tonight and not a single one of the lights changed. All of them are red as well.
So, if you want to drive around, avoid any cops. You'll be running red lights all the time :)