Street Lights to Be Synchronized

A project to synchronize traffic lights on Valley View Street between the Garden Grove Freeway and Artesia Boulevard will begin in mid-July, according to city engineers.

The $450,000 project will enable computers to monitor traffic along the busy corridor and minimize unnecessary stop-and-go driving, engineers say. The two-month project, which also involves the cities of Buena Park, Garden Grove and La Palma, will be paid for by Measure M funds and the Orange County Transportation Authority.

“It’s going to let traffic flow a lot more efficiently,” city engineer Ernesto Munoz said. “Right now we have unnecessary delays because our signals aren’t in line.”

Construction crews will install conduits under the street that will feed traffic information to a central computer. Once the computer has a readout of the traffic, it can time the stoplights to expedite commuters, city engineers say.

Because installing the system requires digging shallow trenches, some lane closures will be necessary. Work will be restricted between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Motorists should not experience significant delays, the engineers say.

Similar projects on Walker Street and Lincoln Avenue will start when funding is available, city officials said.