Ventura to Apply for Emergency Traffic Signal System

The Ventura City Council gave the go-ahead Monday to the city manager to apply for a state grant to install a high-tech system that would help emergency vehicles avoid accidents when speeding through intersections.

With the system, when a firetruck, police car or ambulance gets within a quarter of a mile of a traffic light, a special device turns the light green--and lights in the opposite direction red.

The traffic signal preemption system, as it is known, is used in about 800 cities across the country. The system has two main functions: to reduce the hazard to public safety, by signaling that an emergency vehicle will zoom through the intersection shortly, and to reduce response time during emergencies, because emergency vehicles are less likely to become snarled in traffic.

According to Fire Chief Dennis Downs, response times for emergency vehicles decreased by 17% to 25% after such devices were installed.

Downs did not know of any other Ventura County cities that use the devices but said they are easy to spot. A pipe-like receiver, about 3 inches tall, is attached to either the arm supporting a traffic light over an intersection or to the top of a light at the center of an intersection.

Downs emphasized that the likelihood of being selected for the state grant is slim.

“This is still in its infancy,” he said. “It is a longshot that we will be selected.”

The grant will be submitted shortly, and Ventura will hear from the California Office of Traffic Safety within a few months of application.