Qatar to use traffic lights timers
Qatar’s Traffic Department and Public Works Authority (Ashghal) has launched a study to find the possibilities of installing digital count-down timers at traffic lights, a senior official from the department has said.
“The stop clocks will display the required waiting time for commuters to cross the traffic signal, and countdowns the waiting time for pedestrians to cross the road,” Brigadier Mohammad Maarifia, Head of Traffic Planning and Safety, said.
“Pilot digital stop clocks have highly contributed to provide save time for pedestrians and reduce hesitation and delay of crossing. Doha has been divided into many zones based on traffic congestion to select a suitable programme to monitor the expected traffic throughout the day, both on week days and weekends,” he said, quoted by Qatari daily The Peninsula.
The project has been initiated following many campaigns to curb traffic violations beside the installation of radars at roads and intensified traffic patrols, the official said.
“Pilot digital stop clock was installed at Post Office Roundabout had regulated traffic. The study is recommending the installation of digital timers at different main roads to cope with the urban expansion and rise in the expatriate population,” Brigadier Mohammad Al Maliki, Secretary of National Traffic Safety Committee, said.
The department will conduct awareness campaigns for commuters and pedestrians to deal with digital stop clocks after they are installed.
Existing traffic signals at Doha roads are equipped with facilities to extend or stop green light time function according to the volume of traffic, Captain Mubarak Salem Al Buaynain, the security information head, said.
http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/qatar/qatar-to-use-traffic-lights-timers-1.884061
