County Funding Study Of Traffic Signal Timing

So you have to wait almost an eternity at Argonne and Mission’s red light behind a line of cars until you finally see green?

Spokane County is studying your dilemma.

The county will begin a $1 million study to time those traffic lights at Sullivan, Pines and Argonne Roads across Interstate 90.

In November, the county received federal funds to look at traffic signals on the bridges crossing I-90 and intersections to the north and south.

The study will be contracted out to private consulting firms who will take traffic counts and look at signal timing, in hopes that the state and county can synchronize their traffic lights so drivers can get through intersections faster.

Presently, the Washington State Department of Transportation and the county operate two different signal systems on Sullivan and Argonne.

The transportation department controls the timing of signals on the interchanges, and the county controls timing on roads like Mission and Knox on Argonne.

“The biggest thing is really heavy traffic congestion,” said assistant county engineer Ross Kelley.

The study, which will be contracted out in February, should take six months, Kelley said.

, DataTimes