Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Wayne Roustan answers your traffic questions.
Doctor Detour answers your transportation questions.
Q: Why are traffic lights throughout Fort Lauderdale, particularly on Federal Highway from Sunrise Boulevard to Pompano Beach, all perfectly synchronized to be red at every intersection? One gets to move a few hundred yards before having to stop. Scott Smernis, Lighthouse Point.
A: It may seem like the red light gods are conspiring against us but there are a lot of variables that affect traffic signals.
Some have pre-set times of about two minutes, while others have sensors in the pavement or on mast arms overhead that will turn lights green if there are a lot of vehicles backed up in a particular direction.
Signals may go out of sync if there is construction in the area, if a fire rescue vehicle manually changes the light to green, or a nearby railroad crossing gate is activated. It may take three cycles before the signals are back in sync.
When I recently took a midafternoon drive north on Federal Highway between Sunrise and Atlantic boulevards, I got 18 green lights and 8 red lights averaging 40 mph in spite of heavy traffic, a disabled truck,
and a police traffic stop.
Q: With respect to the Amtrak derailment in Washington state, will the Brightline high-speed passenger trains in South Florida have Positive Train Control on those tracks? If Brightline trains go around corners at 79 mph, like that Amtrak train, what are the chances we’ll have a derailment? Joseph Masinter, Coconut Creek.
A: Federal authorities have given railway systems nationwide until December 2018 to install Positive Train Controls. The new technology will automatically slow or stop a speeding train.
Brightline won’t have it installed when service begins in South Florida but officials said they will meet the deadline.
Among other safety measures, officials said Brightline passenger trains will have two people in every engine, an automatic system that will alert them if the train is going too fast, and sensors on the tracks to make sure crossing gates close well before a speeding train crosses a roadway.