Skip to main content

#JustCurious How traffic lights are timed in Regina

Share
REGINA -

When you’re in a hurry it doesn’t seem like you can catch a break at the lights, right?

A lot of you are #JustCurious how the traffic lights in this city are timed. Perhaps a few of you have caught more red lights than you’re used to.

The City of Regina said traffic signal lights are based on traffic volume data that has been collected from an intersection or group of intersections. The City uses engineering modelling software to set up the best timing based on that data. The maximum time for a green light will vary from location to location depending on the direction of vehicles and the time of day.

The City of Regina uses a minimum green light time of seven seconds and a maximum of ninety seconds. The City says red lights are programmed for the length of the opposing traffic’s green and amber signals. In other words, the time starts on your red light when the opposing traffic goes green.

Accoridng to the City, clearance intervals, which do include the amber light, are based on vehicle speeds, average vehicle lengths and the size of the intersection in question. The typical time for all directions to be red is about two seconds, depending on certain factors.

All that to say, it’s not aimed at “slowing you down” or “disrupting traffic” it’s based on data that is re-evaluated and updated on a regular basis.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'

The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.

Stay Connected