Less Wait to Turn Onto De Soto

Dear Traffic Talk:

The intersection at Burbank Boulevard and De Soto Avenue needs to be adjusted.

Even though eastbound Burbank traffic has two left-turn lanes to turn north onto De Soto, the signal length has been shortened and the opportunity to turn left--including during the yellow light--lasts only eight seconds. As a result, traffic backs up in the evening on Burbank.

Obviously, someone must have thought that the traffic volume was great enough to put in two left-turn lanes and, just as obviously, someone else decided to defeat the two left-turn lanes by reducing the signal length for Burbank to just eight seconds.

How come?

--Paul A. Etner

Santa Clarita

Dear Paul:

The signal time for Burbank used to be determined by the amount of traffic that passed over vehicle detectors embedded in the roadway, said Brian Gallagher, a transportation engineer at the Los Angeles Department of Transportation. But when Burbank was resurfaced this year, those detectors were destroyed, forcing a fixed amount of green time to be programmed for Burbank, he said.

Sometimes the green time may have been too long or too short, Gallagher said. The detectors were recently reinstalled and the green time should be back to normal, he said.

Dear Traffic Talk:

On De Soto Avenue, the timing of the traffic lights at Saticoy Street and Roscoe Boulevard for northbound traffic is not good.

This section of De Soto is posted 35 mph and has frequent enforcement, but to make the light at Roscoe, a driver must travel 45 mph from Saticoy.

Consequently, the bulk of the drivers who aren’t speeding and leave on the green light from Saticoy all get to Roscoe as it turns red. Perhaps the city’s traffic department can find a way to make some improvement?

--Jerry Counts

Canoga Park

Dear Jerry:

Traffic is expected to improve after the green light at Ingomar Street on De Soto--between Roscoe and Saticoy--is adjusted in a few weeks, said DOT’s Gallagher.

“Now Ingomar is causing cars to stop unnecessarily,” Gallagher said. “We’re changing it so it starts and ends with the time of cars arriving [at Ingomar]. That will help northbound traffic the most, but southbound will get some benefit, too.”

The signals between Saticoy and Roscoe are synchronized for 35 mph traffic, Gallagher said. The light at Roscoe--compared with the signals at Saticoy and Ingomar--turns green less often because it needs extra time to accommodate left-turn signals. So the Roscoe green signal is synchronized with the Saticoy green light during only every other light cycle, Gallagher said.

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