For years, the traffic signals at Eastern Avenue and Broadway have remained inoperative. Recent maintenance work has brought them closer to working order, yet a new question has emerged: should the City proceed with completing the repairs?
City Manager Tom Ambrosino addressed this matter in a letter that was read aloud. “The constraint on operating the lights has not just been the control box,” “Rather, there has been real concern that having the lights fully functioning on the typical green, yellow, and red sequence will adversely impact the flow of traffic. Because it has been so long since the lights have functioned in that fashion, I cannot opine of the legitimacy of that concern.”
Two years prior, the City Council allocated funds for repairs to the signal control box, which have since been finished. Only a modest $2,000 investment now separates the intersection from having a fully operational traffic light.
Currently, traffic moves reasonably well through the intersection, though drivers entering Broadway from Clinton Street often experience uncertainty about how to proceed.
According to Ambrosino, the Council bears responsibility for making this decision. His recommendation involves testing a working signal for 30 to 60 days to determine whether it improves or worsens traffic conditions.
An alternative approach Ambrosino proposed involves installing advanced traffic signals equipped with smart technology, cameras, and sensors capable of adjusting timing automatically based on real-time traffic flow. Similar upgraded systems have already received Council approval for the Williams Street corridor.
Should additional development occur at the Creek, such sophisticated signals could prove beneficial, Ambrosino noted. “I do believe that, if any further development is to occur at either the Forbes site or the old Midas site, an upgrade to a smart intersection at this location will be an essential precondition to such development,” he said.
The fall is expected to bring a formal proposal on this matter.