Many Austin traffic signals include technology that detects cars traveling in the roadway, Austin Transportation Department engineer Brian Goldberg said. However, if a driver is distracted at an intersection and does not advance, the traffic signal device interprets this action as signifying that no cars remain in the queue to pass through the intersection, he said. As a result the signal turns red, leaving a trail of cars and frustrated drivers in the queue, he said.[/caption]Brian Goldberg said he saw a pile of cars delayed because a vehicle was distracted at a green light. He said when the driver became aware that the cars in front of him had already passed through the green light, the signal had turned yellow, ensuring his safe passage but leaving a trail of vehicles stuck at the now-red light.
The two-year Austin Transportation Department traffic engineer said he takes light timing seriously and this incident, among other similar events, sparked Goldberg to launch a campaign July 13 to make drivers more aware of their surroundings at signalled intersections.
“My goal is to make sure everyone can get around the city as quickly and safely as possible,” Goldberg said. “When I see this happening, I know everyone who is driving on that intersection is frustrated. And I’m frustrated because I’m working on these timings and I have a passion for that. My timings are not working right, and it’s out of my hands at that point.”
He said traffic signals provide enough green-light time to allow the all the vehicles in the queue to pass through the intersection.
About 85 percent of all Austin traffic signals have vehicle protection—through either cameras and/or in-ground inductive loop detectors, Goldberg said. The cameras view the signal approach and monitor if a vehicle enters a set zone, he said. A loop detector includes a metal loop, or wire embedded in the pavement, that detects anything magnetic—such as a vehicle or bicycle—that drives over it, he said.
When a vehicle is detected on a side street to a main thoroughfare, the monitoring system receives an alert that vehicles are approaching and notifies the signal more green time is needed on the roadway to allow the vehicles pass, Goldberg said. The advantage to using this is the signal will know when it should give green time to traffic on the side street and when it should give it back to the main street, he said.
He said distracted driving takes away time from vehicle approaches that need green time, leaving frustrated drivers waiting for the next green light. He said his department has received numerous calls recently about this issue.
“When I’m looking at a signal, I’m looking at the side street to see if it’s getting enough time," Goldberg said. "We have these loops set up that are detecting vehicles and in certain situations the first two vehicles may go and they’ll clear off the loop and then the signal thinks, ‘There’s no one here anymore—let’s give the time back to the major street.’ But there’s still a queue of 20 cars that haven’t cleared yet."
Goldberg said distractions not only include texting but drivers talking to their children, women putting on makeup, drivers trying to find a radio station and other activities. He said the issue is not just confined to one area but “is all over town.”
However, Goldberg is not just a city traffic engineer—he is an Austin driver as well.
“I’m sure if I was in that line [of vehicles behind a distracted driver], I would be really upset that I didn’t get to get through and then think, ‘Oh, the signal’s not working right—I better call [the city information center telephone number] 3-1-1 and report this,’” Goldberg said. “Hopefully, by raising awareness about this, we can help people know that they have a part in making sure traffic in Austin is moving efficiently.”
