An Orlando resident is urging county officials to consider improving technology at traffic lights that he says will minimize congestion and improve pedestrian safety.
During Tuesday’s meeting of the Orange County Board of County Commissioners, College Park resident Trevor Hall, Jr. took to the podium to share his suggestions for how the county should address its traffic woes.
“We all suffer from traffic congestion and with 2,500 people moving every week to the greater Orlando area, it’s only going to get worse unless we upgrade the signalization intelligence,” said Hall. He says that the county should invest in LiDAR mapping for every major intersection around the area to address the issue.
“When [LiDAR] sees a bus coming 250 meters away, it gets a green light every time. If it sees a white cane in the intersection, all red, every time. Pedestrian safety and enhanced connectivity for vehicles,” said Hall.
LiDAR is a method for determining ranges by targeting an object with a laser and measuring the time for the reflected light to return to the receiver.
Hall believes LiDAR would greatly increase the “throughput traffic” during rush hour and off-peak hours.
“How many times do we sit at a traffic light at an empty intersection? How many times do we speed up for a green light? Which is not safe. We’re programmed to do that by antiquated traffic controllers,” said Hall.
Hall believes that more residents may readily approve a proposed one-cent sales surtax to address transportation in the county if they understand that it will reduce congestion.
“If your staff identify 300 intersections around Orange County and say these will all be upgraded so as to reduce congestion, you will find that people will begin to support and perceive how they would benefit from paying an additional tax. If all you’re selling is SunRail, I’m sorry. I’m a big supporter, I have no need for SunRail unless I’m going to the airport…but other than that, I live in College Park. I live close to where I work, I ride a bicycle. I really think that enhanced pedestrian safety and reducing traffic congestion are real selling points for the one-cent tax,” concluded Hall.