January 27, 2000
City electrician trying to get traffic, stoplights in sync
By Erik Burriss
Staff Writer
Are you tired of stopping and starting all the way from one end of Tiffin to the other on Washington and Market streets? Are ill-timed traffic signals getting you down?
Well, be prepared to stop beating on the steering wheel and turning the air inside your vehicle blue with curses. Tiffin's Public Works Department is working the bugs out of the city's new traffic signal control system.
The system was installed last summer by the Ohio Department of Transportation. The new signals &emdash; 21 lights between Wentz and East Perry streets on Market, and between Sycamore Street and Six's Corner on Washington &emdash; were turned over to the city's control Nov. 30.
City electrician Bill Gibson has been working on getting acquainted with the new system and adapting it to Tiffin's traffic idiosyncrasies ever since.
"It'll be a few more months before we get it right," Gibson said.
However, there has been some definite progress toward normalization of traffic flow.
"I just got Washington Street finalized three weeks ago," Gibson said. "It took me quite awhile to get Washington set up."
A 15-year veteran of Tiffin Public Works, Gibson is in charge of all things electrical for the city.
"Anything with wires and voltages, I take care of," he said.
Contributing to the stop-and-go nature of travel around town was ODOT's removal of the old system's interconnects between traffic signals. All of the work that had been done in the past to ensure smooth traffic flow went with them.
"Jefferson, Perry and Sandusky are no longer connected together," Gibson said. "I know Jefferson's timing is not right."
Some other things that may take some getting used to, Gibson said, are a 10-second increase in the signals' cycle &emdash; motorists on Washington and Market's cross streets will have to wait longer before getting a green light &emdash; and the installation of sensors on the cross streets to tell the lights to change.
"They'll need to pull up to the stop bar, or else they're going to wait until the next vehicle trips it," he said.
The system definitely has its advantages, though. It monitors the condition of each signal and, if it detects a problem, will set the signal to flashing instead of just shutting down.
Also, Gibson can use the computer in his office to keep tabs on conditions at each intersection with the new lights. By calling the system's modem, he can get information including which street has a red light and which is green or yellow, the status of the pedestrian signals and if there are any cars waiting for the light to change.
He also can change the timing of the lights from his office. In order to adjust the timing for the older lights, Gibson said, he has to go to the intersection and measure the time it takes for a vehicle to get from one intersection to the next.
The system also incorporates a sensor that can detect the signal from a special strobe light on emergency vehicles and quickly cycle to give the emergency vehicle a green light.
"The signal could change to green for a moment, then change back to red," Gibson said. "It's not a malfunction in the system, it's a police car or fire truck preempting it."
Troubleshooting malfunctioning signals is easier with the new system, and safer.
"I can bring the suspect unit in here and test it," he said, with the backup control system in his office, "instead of testing it in the field."
The new signals should be less subject to inclement weather, Gibson said. For some reason, the old signals' timing is thrown off by cold weather.
"When it gets sub-zero, they slow down," he said.
However, Gibson anticipates working on the new system more during the spring and summer when thunderstorms start rolling through the area.
"The lights stay in sync," he said, "unless there's a power outage."
Problems like that, plus instructions from the mayor, city administrator and ODOT on changes that need made, as well as complaints from the public, ensure that keeping the traffic moving smoothly is a work that is never complete.
Gibson said he already has heard from residents about the 10-second increase to the cycle time, but considers that part of the job.
"If people have a complaint, call Public Works and let us know," he said. "If it's a problem, we'll fix it."