Small Business Grants

BEHIND THIS PROJECT. TRAFFIC SIGNALS CREATE ORDER OUT OF WHAT WOULD OTHERWISE BE TRAFFIC CHAOS. AND AS MILWAUKEE CITY ENGINEER WILL TELL YOU, THERE IS ACTUAL SCIENCE THAT GOES INTO THE TIMING AND COORDINATION OF THOSE SIGNALS. WE WANT TO USE IT AS A SPEED MANAGEMENT TOOL. WE WANT TO ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO STAY CLOSER TO THE SPEED LIMIT ON EVERY STREET IN THE CITY. WE ARE ALSO STUDYING WHETHER OR NOT WE SHOULD BE REDUCING THE SPEED LIMITS. SO AGAIN, IF WE REDUCE THE SPEED LIMIT, WE MAYBE SHOULD BE RETIMING THE TRAFFIC SIGNALS. SO THAT WILL WORK. YOU KNOW, THOSE WILL WORK IN TANDEM. THIS CAN IMPACT A LOT OF THINGS LIKE EVEN IDLING OR FUEL USE OR IMPATIENCE. EXACTLY. YES. MILWAUKEE HAS A STAGGERING 760 INTERSECTIONS CONTROLLED BY TRAFFIC SIGNALS, AND THE CITY WAS JUST AWARDED 5.3 MILLION FEDERAL DOLLARS TO CALL IN NATIONAL EXPERTS TO HELP STUDY HOW TO BEST RETIME THEM ALL. ITS MONEY, ACCORDING TO THE FEDS, THAT CAN ONLY BE USED TO IMPROVE AIR QUALITY BY REDUCING TRAFFIC CONGESTION. ONE OF THE THINGS WELL BE LOOKING AT IS SHOULD WE BE MOVING LONGER OR SHORTER ON THOSE CYCLES? WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS, THE SAFETY BENEFITS, INCLUDING MAYBE BETTER COMPLIANCE BECAUSE PEOPLE MAYBE WILL BE LESS IMPATIENT IF WE CAN GET TO A SHORTER CYCLE. 60 PEOPLE HAVE DIED IN THE MORE THAN 3000 MILWAUKEE CRASHES, SO FAR THIS YEAR. IMPATIENCE RUNNING RED LIGHTS IS A BIG FACTOR IN MANY OF THEM. WE WANT TO ENCOURAGE LOGICAL TRAFFIC FLOW. WE ALSO WANT TO USE THEM AS A LITTLE BIT OF A SPEED MANAGEMENT TOOL. SO WE DONT WANT TO REWARD PEOPLE WHO ARE GOING, YOU KNOW, A CERTAIN AMOUNT OVER THE SPEED LIMIT BY GIVING THEM A WHOLE BUNCH OF GREENS IN A ROW, RIGHT? SO ITS THAT BALANCING ACT. STUDYING PEDESTRIAN SAFETY IS ANOTHER PART, POSSIBLY RETIMING THE WALK SIGNALS SO THAT THE PEDESTRIAN GETS A HEAD START OF MAYBE THREE SECONDS BEFORE THE LIGHT TURNS GREEN FOR TRAFFIC WITH 20 PEDESTRIANS KILLED LAST YEAR AND 16 MORE SO FAR THIS YEAR, THE CITY WANTS TO TRY EVERYTHING, SO YOURE LIKELY TO BE, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER TEN FEET OUT INTO THE INTERSECTION. AND SO THEYRE MORE LIKELY TO YIELD FOR YOU. AND THEN ALSO, JUST FROM A SAFETY PERSPECTIVE, THEYRE MORE LIKELY TO SEE YOU. AND THE CITY BELIEVES THIS WILL BE ONE MORE IMPORTANT PIECE IN REDUCING DEVASTATING CRASHES. COULD THIS HAVE A DETERRENT EFFECT ON RECKLESS DRIVING? THATS WHAT WERE