Synchronized Green Lights : Traffic Flow Upgrade Wins Final Funding

A major traffic improvement plan designed to cut cross-Valley travel time by synchronizing 358 signals between Ventura and Victory boulevards has received the final phase of funding.

The Los Angeles County Transportation Commission on Wednesday provided the final $16 million needed to assure completion of the $20.6-million project by the summer of 1989, Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Woo said Thursday.

The San Fernando Valley project will improve traffic flow by 10% to 20%, said Woo, who proposed the program along with Councilwoman Joy Picus and Assemblyman Richard Katz (D-Sepulveda).

All-Day Rush

“Traffic congestion in the Valley is a nightmare, with rush hour becoming an all-day affair for drivers,” Woo said. “With the headache of construction along the Ventura Freeway, this wide-ranging traffic-improvement plan offers a ray of hope to Valley commuters.”

The project involves the installation of computerized traffic lights in a 19.5-mile-long area bordered by Victory Boulevard on the north, Ventura Boulevard on the south, Valley Circle Boulevard on the west and Clybourn Avenue on the east. As proposed, the project’s western boundary was to have been Reseda Boulevard, but the commission allocated funds to expand it to Valley Circle.

The system, called ATSACS for Automated Traffic Surveillance and Control System, uses a computer to monitor traffic through intersections and automatically changes green and red lights according to traffic flow.

Introduced in ’84

Sensors embedded in streets send traffic information to the computer over telephone lines. The system was successfully introduced during the 1984 Olympics to guide traffic around the Coliseum.

The city and state are contributing $3 million and $1.6 million, respectively, to the project.

City funds will be used to complete installation of the system on Ventura Boulevard.

The system is being installed on Ventura between Reseda and Woodland Hills. That portion is expected to be completed by mid-July.

It was not scheduled to be installed on the rest of Ventura for several years. But Mayor Tom Bradley and the City Council provided funds in the 1988-89 city budget to complete the project on Ventura Boulevard by mid-1989 to improve traffic flow during widening of the Ventura Freeway.

The funds provided by the county will permit the system to be installed on parallel streets north of Ventura Boulevard to Victory Boulevard, including Victory.

The commission approved the project by an 8-1 vote with Commissioner Pete Schabarum, a county supervisor, dissenting. Schabarum objected to not giving other cities an opportunity to compete for the funds.