Roads: Traffic Signals

[chrisw]

• 400 cameras across Toronto
• Pedestrian detectors for leading pedestrian interval
• Lidar detectors can get quite a lot of information regarding, cars, buses, transit, pedestrians, cyclists from quite far away.
• They have a lot of real time data and can also adjust signals remotely.

 

[lenaitch]

• 400 cameras across Toronto
• Pedestrian detectors for leading pedestrian interval
• Lidar detectors can get quite a lot of information regarding, cars, buses, transit, pedestrians, cyclists from quite far away.
• They have a lot of real time data and can also adjust signals remotely.

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Toronto Traffic Management might tap into the camera feeds but cameras on the 400-series highways are part of the MTO's COMPASS system.

 

[Towered]

My "favourite" new utterly useless traffic light is one recently installed at Islington and Ridgevalley Crescent, because you know, a dozen bungalows backing onto St. George's golf course in an area with zero pedestrian activity and no schools, shops or other businesses anywhere nearby was truly crying out for a ******* traffic light. I'd LOVE to see the report that justified such wasteful spending.

 

[Dan416]

I feel like they like to put in traffic lights to just slow down traffic rather than because they're needed.

 

[Towered]

I feel like they like to put in traffic lights to just slow down traffic rather than because they're needed.

I get it in areas where it makes sense (Roncesvalles for example could probably use another light or two instead of those dreadful crosswalks), but along this stretch of Islington there is absolutely zero reason to slow down traffic. Zero.

 

[Dan416]

I get it in areas where it makes sense (Roncesvalles for example could probably use another light or two instead of those dreadful crosswalks), but along this stretch of Islington there is absolutely zero reason to slow down traffic. Zero.

I find driving in Toronto pretty painful tbh. And driving in Mississauga I feel like the traffic lights are timed to give you a read as much as possible on purpose. For example, driving to my parents, going up Creditview, the traffic light for Rathkeale is almost always red when the light at Eglinton a couple hundred meters north is green. So I will always have to wait a full cycle there. Unless I'm speeding enough to make it. But seriously the timing of the lights really encourages speeding.

 

[afransen]

I find driving in Toronto pretty painful tbh. And driving in Mississauga I feel like the traffic lights are timed to give you a read as much as possible on purpose. For example, driving to my parents, going up Creditview, the traffic light for Rathkeale is almost always red when the light at Eglinton a couple hundred meters north is green. So I will always have to wait a full cycle there. Unless I'm speeding enough to make it. But seriously the timing of the lights really encourages speeding.

Creditview is a collector. The lights are timed for the arterials.

 

[Amare]

My "favourite" new utterly useless traffic light is one recently installed at Islington and Ridgevalley Crescent, because you know, a dozen bungalows backing onto St. George's golf course in an area with zero pedestrian activity and no schools, shops or other businesses anywhere nearby was truly crying out for a ******* traffic light. I'd LOVE to see the report that justified such wasteful spending.

This city has officially gone nuts with traffic light installations. That's in the Top 3 of most useless places i've ever seen a traffic signal be installed.

I'll take a guess at what happened; a resident probably complained that they couldnt make a left turn onto Islington from either Prince George or Ridgevalley, so the city decided to appease the upper-class resident by installing the useless traffic signal. Either that, or the city is just completely idiotic.

 

[Dan416]

Like, does the city not need to pay for electricity to run all these excessive traffic lights?

 

[innsertnamehere]

yes they do. And they cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to install, and hundreds of thousands to replace every 15 years or so.

Most of these useless signals are directives from Councillors offices, as council is generally happy to override Transportation's recommendations if the local councillor wants it.

The one on Islington was likely a result of a councillor complaining about excessive speeding along that stretch. What better way to slow people down than to make them uselessly wait at a red light!

 

[Towered]

yes they do. And they cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to install, and hundreds of thousands to replace every 15 years or so.

Most of these useless signals are directives from Councillors offices, as council is generally happy to override Transportation's recommendations if the local councillor wants it.

The one on Islington was likely a result of a councillor complaining about excessive speeding along that stretch. What better way to slow people down than to make them uselessly wait at a red light!

What doesn't make sense with that theory is that this is Stephen Holyday's ward, and he's very much against anything that impedes cars, so I strongly doubt that this joke of a light came from him...if anything, I could see him fighting against it (if he was even aware of it).

 

[Towered]

This city has officially gone nuts with traffic light installations. That's in the Top 3 of most useless places i've ever seen a traffic signal be installed.

What are your other Top 2?

 

[Amare]

What are your other Top 2?

Oh you're going to love them, i've circled the locations in red:

1) Spadina south of Bloor

2) We can debate as to which of the traffic lights along Queens Park Circle are the most useless, but this one here in my books take the cake a chief of all of them:

I mean honestly what are we even doing in this city...

 

[Towered]

Oh you're going to love them, i've circled the locations in red:

1) Spadina south of Bloor

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2) We can debate as to which of the traffic lights along Queens Park Circle are the most useless, but this one here in my books take the cake a chief of all of them:

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I mean honestly what are we even doing in this city...

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Yes, that one 100 meters south of Bloor and Spadina is ridiculous - I actually ranted about it here a while back, haha.

 

[Towered]

Also, why do small local streets like Harbord or Annette seem to have a dozen ******* lights bunched in close proximity along their short lengths??