The pole on the corner of Featherston St and Whitmore St came down just before 11am today.
No one was injured when the light fell.
Wellington City Council owns the traffic light. Staff have been examining the scene, but what caused the light to fall remained a mystery to them.
Council spokesman Clayton Anderson said the light "seems to have snapped in an odd place".
Police confirmed the light did not come down as a result of a crash.
Mr Anderson said possibilities included strong winds blowing the light down, or stress related to the recent earthquakes.
"We're checking all options because it seems odd," he said.
"Until we can get debriefed by contractors and have our guys check it we can't say."
The council will look at the light's design plans for clues.
"Our engineers are getting out the design information and looking through it and checking all our other poles," Mr Anderson said.
The light was installed in 2007 and is one of the newer traffic light designs around the city.The new lights, with a curved pole, replaced an old design that featured a straight pole.
Mr Anderson said this is the first time a traffic light like this has fallen down, and the council would check all other poles of a similar design.
Police have put cordons in place and are asking drivers to avoid the area if possible.Contractors will remove the light and replace it with a temporary one today. A full replacement will be installed in early January.
Both the southbound lane of Featherston St and the westbound lane of Whitmore St have been reduced from two lanes to one.
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