SINGAPORE: The Land Transport Authority (LTA) will
bring forward its plans to install overhead traffic lights at the
junction of Victoria Street and Rochor Road.
LTA said it will start installing the overhead traffic lights on
Tuesday, instead of waiting for Downtown Line MRT works to be
completed next year.
The traffic lights are expected to start operating early next
week.
LTA said it decided to do so following public feedback and
suggestions on how to further improve the road junction.
A fatal accident at the junction involving a Ferrari and a taxi on
May 12 left three dead.
Another accident occurred on May 26 involving a Lexus and a
taxi.
LTA said its traffic engineers have studied the feedback and
suggestions, and decided to bring forward the installation of the
overhead traffic lights at the junction as another precautionary
measure, instead of waiting till 2013 as planned.
Authorities synchronised traffic lights at the junction last week
to improve safety in the area.
By June 5, the overhead traffic signals will also be installed and
the lights are expected to be operational by next week.
However, the overhead traffic lights will result in a narrowing of
the pedestrian footpath there until the road is reinstated after
the construction of Downtown Line (Stage 1) is completed by the
middle of 2013.
LTA said this is a trade-off to accommodate the additional
precautionary measure.
Motorists and experts said that the positioning of the traffic
lights at the intersection may be confusing to drivers.
Along Victoria Street, the junctions just before and after the
intersection with Rochor Road both have overhead traffic lights
while the intersection where the accidents took place, did not have
any.
Associate Professor of Civil Engineering at the National University
of Singapore, Professor Lee Der-Horng, said: "This overhead traffic
light installation will enhance safety. It will register a stronger
message to the driver and alert them to the traffic condition in
this particular junction".
Apart from traffic signals, there are also calls for clear signs
indicating the area to be at high risk of accidents.
One example is the International Road Assessment Programme (IRAP)
which uses colour-coded signs to warn motorists that they are in a
high-risk area.
Singapore Road Traffic Council chairman, Bernard Tay, said this
system is already used in the US, Australia and some parts of
Europe.
IRAP assesses the road according to the elements in the
vicinity.
Roads are colour coded according to its danger levels starting from
green, blue, red and black. Black signifies the road is highly
dangerous.
After classifying the roads, colour-coded signs are put up to warn
motorists.
Mr Tay said: "It may be useful to look into this and see whether we
can learn something from this IRAP
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Ferrari, taxi and motorcycle crashed at Bugis replied by Poolman @ Tue, 05 Jun 2012 15:36:33 +0800
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