The installation of a high-tech traffic-light system on campus this fall will soon ease car travel at MSU, police say.
In the coming weeks, every traffic light on campus will be connected to a camera system that analyzes the pace of the roads. The system will cause lights to logically change as traffic patterns vary.
"Essentially, it makes the lights talk to each other about how they move traffic," said MSU police Deputy Chief Mike Rice, who called the system an example of "proven technology."
Once the system is running, police will conduct a traffic study that will help customize the technology to fit campus patterns. Cameras will not be used to take pictures or patrol for traffic offenders, Rice said.
James Baron, spokesman for the Virginia-based American Traffic Safety Services Association, said intelligent traffic systems are becoming more common as technology improves.
"It assists you in getting to your destination without you doing anything," said Baron, whose association represents about 1,800 road-safety device manufacturers. "There is a lot of technology on the roadway that folks aren't aware of that they pass by every day.
"It is out there and it is designed to save lives."
Installing MSU's system will be the second phase of a long-term plan to improve campus traffic flow and safety. A project to rebuild the five most dangerous intersections on campus was completed two years ago as part of MSU's 2020 Vision plan to improve campus.
Campus traffic indicators showed that the intersections of Farm Lane and Auditorium Road, Farm Lane and Wilson Road, Bogue Street and Shaw Lane, Red Cedar Road and Shaw Lane, and Chestnut Road and Shaw Lane needed improvements to reduce traffic incidents, Rice said.
There were 662 motor vehicle accidents on campus last year, compared to 817 in 2001, according to statistics from the MSU Department of Police and Public Safety.
"Traffic moves better," Rice said, adding that the landscape has made pedestrian traffic less dangerous. "Accidents have come down."
Officials have not set a date for the installation of the $30,000 traffic-light system but expect it to be activated this semester. The upgrade will be financed with parking ticket proceeds.
Even during difficult economic times, Rice said MSU remains focused on making appropriate upgrades in the interest of safety.
"Sometimes because of cost constraints, improvements don't happen as rapidly," Rice said. "But they continue to happen. We continue to spend money to improve safety."
