The traffic lights at the intersection of Charles and Elizabeth streets stopped working on Christmas Day and were still out yesterday.

A Department of Infrastructure, Energy and Resources spokeswoman on Thursday said the lights would be repaired ``as soon as possible''.

Inspector Darren Hopkins, of Northern District Support Services, said the main traffic control box had been destroyed and it would be very expensive and cumbersome to replace.

He estimated repairs could take a week or more.

Inspector Hopkins said he was unaware of any crashes at the intersection, but said pedestrians were having difficulty crossing the road.

``We have had police there to look at the site, but people looked to them to do point duty and it confused people,'' he said.

``People expected us to direct traffic.

``Unfortunately, we can't have someone there 24-7, so we stayed away.''

Inspector Hopkins said people should treat the intersection as a normal intersection and obey the ``give way to the right'' rule.

He advised pedestrians to cross the road at a different point when the intersection was busy.

Launceston Road Safety Consultative Committee chairman and Launceston alderman Jim Cox said it was unfortunate the traffic lights broke during a time when manpower was at a minimum.

He called for the repairs to be done quickly and advised people to use commonsense when navigating the intersection.