Each year, the City receives many inquiries concerning the operation and installation of traffic signals within the City. The public's understanding of the function of traffic signals can improve driving habits by reducing speeding and associated traffic accidents. The more drivers know about the operation of traffic signals the less they will be frustrated when waiting for a signal to change. As traffic volumes increase beyond the capability of lesser controls such as a four-way stop, it may be necessary to install a traffic signal.
Traffic signals are valuable devices for the control of vehicles and pedestrian traffic.
Before installing a traffic signal at an intersection, established minimum criteria must be satisfied. They relay messages of both what to do and what not to do. This is done by permitting conflicting streams of traffic to share the same intersection by means of time separation. By alternately assigning right of way to various traffic movements, signals provide for the orderly movement of conflicting flows. They may interrupt extremely heavy flows to permit the crossing of minor movements that could not otherwise move safely through an intersection.