I heard about this study on the podcast Curiosity Daily[0] and found it interesting as I was sure that keeping the small distance possible from the next car would be better to cross the stop light faster. Anyway, I always find this kind of "daily life science" amusing, as sometimes they can be applied in real situations (like this one), or just to satisfy our curiosity about things.

[0]https://curiositydaily.com/censoring-information-backfires-s...

In a city with a lot of traffic, more space between cars stopped at the light means that the line of cars may be more likely to be blocking the previous intersection.

Might work best when drivers are not staring at their smartphone while waiting.