Innovative Traffic Light Puts Brakes On Long Beach Speed Demons
LONG BEACH (CBSLA.com) —The city of Long Beach is testing out a new, innovative traffic light that it hopes will put the brakes on speed demons in the area.
The city has long had a problem with speeders in the one-mile stretch of Wardlow Road between Studebaker Road and Claremore Avenue.
"It starts to pick up and gets faster because people know they can speed right through the park area," said resident Rich Tobin.
Traffic engineers placed flashing signs and widened bike lanes to keep drivers below the speed limit, but nothing seemed to work.
That's until a signal in front of Fire Station 5 came into town.
The traffic light stays red in all directions, at all times.
However, if cars approach at or below the speed limit, the light turns green.
If a driver goes over the limit, the light stays red and slows them down—sometimes to a complete stop.
Residents are happy to see something being done to slow down aggressive drivers.
"I think it will be helpful, but I don't think it will be the answer. It's hard to control such a long area," said Ray Luca.
