According to today’s news, it seems that the project to synchronize traffic lights will be complete by May 2007. So this means that the new traffic lights will be programmed in different sectors to synchronize in accordance with traffic patterns for different times of the day like morning and afternoon rush hour. At some high traffic intersections, there will be sensors embedded in the road that will synchronize the lights in response to the actual traffic.
I sure hope these measures work to make traffic flow smoother for both drivers and pedestrians alike. I rarely have the need or desire to drive anywhere since I live in the heart of the city but I’ve noticed that driving in Laval is much smoother where they already have sensors in the road. As a pedestrian, it always irks me every morning and never fails to surprise me, when cars block the intersection that I’m crossing because the drivers just have to advance when the light is about to change even though traffic ahead is clearly not moving. Hopefully, if traffic is smoother, this won’t happen as much and I won’t have to give people dirty looks through their windshields…