Traffic Signal Master Plan

Transcription

1 Traffic Signal Master Plan DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS Engineering Division June 2006

2 i TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive Summary... iii 1.0 PURPOSE CITY TRAFFIC SIGNAL SYSTEM Introduction 2.2 City Traffic Signal System Defined BACKGROUND Quantity of Existing Traffic Signals City-owned Traffic Signals Traffic Signals Along State Routes Traffic Signals Owned by the University of Illinois Interconnect Traffic Signals Design and Construction Standards Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) IDOT Bureau of Design and Environment Manual (BDE) IDOT Standard Specifications for Road and Bridge Construction City of Champaign Design Standards Condition of Existing Traffic Signals Condition ratings for City-owned Signals Condition of IDOT Signals Prior Council Actions Traffic Signal Master Plan Study Session Traffic Signal Master Plan Adoption Approval of Contracts for Projects Included in the 1994 Plan Other Traffic Signal Installations Traffic Signal Maintenance Agreement (IDOT) CURRENT TRAFFIC SIGNAL SERVICE ACTIVITIES Personnel and Budget Personnel Budget Maintenance Response Maintenance Preventative Maintenance Electricity Phone Charges IDOT Billing University of Illinois Billing Traffic Signal Timing and Coordination Design Modification and Traffic Signal Upgrades Traffic Signal Upgrades...22 City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

3 ii Design Modification Capital Improvement Projects Intersection Design Studies (IDS) Phase I Design Studies Traffic Signal Replacement Projects New Traffic Signal Installations Intersection Improvement Projects Traffic Signal Projects Upgrades Along State Routes TRAFFIC SIGNAL PROGRAM DEFICIENCIES Tracking Hours by Various Types of Traffic Signal Work Preventative Maintenance Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) Interconnect Frequency of Traffic Signal Re-timing Frequency of Crash Analysis for Existing and Proposed Signal Locations Condition of Existing Traffic Signals Emergency vehicle Pre-emption IDOT Reimbursement/Traffic Signal Maintenance Agreement Funding for New Traffic Signal Installations TRAFFIC SIGNAL MASTER PLAN Work Order System Preventative Maintenance Traffic and Lighting Operating Budget Traffic Signal Upgrade Project Upgrades Interconnect Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) Traffic and Lighting Staff Hour Estimates Traffic Signal Timings Crash Analyses of Existing and Proposed Signalized Intersections Emergency Vehicle Pre-emption IDOT Reimbursement/Traffic Signal Maintenance Agreement Traffic Signal Replacements New Traffic Signal Installations Staffing Levels...40 APPENDIX A - TRAFFIC SIGNAL SYSTEM LOCATION MAPS APPENDIX B INTERSECTION SUMMARY SHEETS APPENDIX C SUPPORT INFORMATION FOR SECTION 4.0 APPENDIX D SUPPORT INFORMATION FOR SECTION 6.0 City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

4 iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY There are 110 traffic signals within the City. o 59 at the intersection of two City streets o 42 along State routes o 7 on the University of Illinois campus o 2 fire station signals There are 8 interconnected signal systems consisting of 49 traffic signals within the City. Interconnect maintains the integrity of coordinated traffic signal timings and provides remote communication to PW for monitoring operations and error reporting. Traffic signals built in the last 15 years closely resemble those built today and satisfy, or are close to satisfying current design standards. Of the 66 City-owned traffic signals, 41 fall into this category. Of the remaining 25 signalized intersections, o 15 are in poor condition, do not have signals located over the street and/or have geometric deficiencies related to delay or safety issues. Of these, 10 are located Downtown and 2 on campus. o 8 are in need of an upgrade to some or all of the traffic signal equipment. Estimated resources dedicated to traffic signal maintenance for FY 2007 include: o $41,340 for materials/repairs for maintenance activities o $72,900 for utility costs o $27,000 for overtime and standby o $136,510 for the Traffic Signal Upgrade Project The City maintains State and University traffic signals through maintenance agreements and bill each for the work performed. The City s share of costs for improvements to intersections of City streets with State routes is outlined through intergovernmental agreements. Current allocation of electrical technician staff hours include: o Approximately 750 hours for response maintenance (knockdowns, outages, failures) o Approximately 1,250 hours for preventative maintenance activities o Approximately 1,500 hours for design modification (changes to improve operation) or traffic signal upgrades (replacement of some or all above ground equipment at the end of its life cycle) Traffic signal program deficiencies include: o Hours related to specific maintenance tasks have not been tracked, making it difficult to predict future staff hour commitments as the system ages and grows. o Preventative maintenance activities have been performed on an ad hoc basis, rather than at regularly scheduled intervals. o Only six intersections have Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS). UPS can keep a signal operational for 3 hours and provides an additional hour of flashing operation in the event of a power outage. The goal is to have UPS at all signalized intersections. o Only 49 traffic signals are part of and interconnected signal system. The goal is to have remote communications to all traffic signals. o Traffic signal retiming by City staff is on a 7-year cycle. The recommended interval for retiming is every 3 years. o Crash analysis lags behind 4 to 5 years. The most recent report prepared by the Champaign-Urbana Urbanized Transportation Study (CUUATS) included data up to o 15 existing traffic signals require replacement. City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

5 o 8 intersections are due for some type of upgrade between now and o Traffic signal upgrades have not been budgeted and planned for based on the 20-year life expectancy of the traffic signal hardware. Staff plans to address deficiencies by: o Implementing a work order system in o Implementing a regularly scheduled preventative maintenance program in o Requesting a total of $257,500 in additional funding to the Traffic Signal Upgrade Project over the next 5 years. The Traffic Signal Upgrade Project will: Complete 3 traffic signal upgrades by upgrading the controller cabinet. o o o Perform 2 complete traffic signal upgrades of City-owned intersections. Perform 3 complete traffic signal upgrades to the three University of Illinois traffic signals maintained by the City. The University would be billed for this work. Three City-owned intersections that are due for upgrades will not be addressed. The Kirby Avenue signals were chosen based on public benefit based on the fact that Kirby is a major commuter route. Install UPS at 25 intersections. Complete 3 interconnected signal systems consisting of 18 intersections. Tracking time demands for traffic signal timing to determine what re-timing cycle is feasible at current staffing levels and evaluating whether that is acceptable. Moving forward with projects budgeted in the CIP over the next 5 years, including: Replacement of First and Green traffic signals in Replacement of Fourth and University traffic signals in Study of the 10 intersection Downtown that will result in approved design concepts and an implementation plan. Study of the intersection of Fourth and Daniel. Installation of new traffic signals at the Duncan/Curtis and Mattis/Curtis intersections. Submitting requests for funding through the CIP process for: Left turn lanes and replacement of traffic signals at the Kirby/State and First/Windsor intersections. New traffic signal installations at the Bradley/McKinley, Kirby/Crescent and Bradley/Duncan intersections. iii City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

6 1 1.0 PURPOSE The purpose of the Traffic Signal Master Plan is to provide a comprehensive evaluation of the City s traffic signal system. There are three tasks associated with the Master Plan. Examine the current conditions, maintenance operations, and planned improvements for the City's traffic signal system. Identify areas for improvement. Recommend courses of action to address those areas. 2.0 CITY TRAFFIC SIGNAL SYSTEM 2.1 Introduction. The traffic signal system is one of the key components of the City s transportation system. The basic function of a traffic signal is to assign the right-of-way to vehicles and pedestrians at busy intersections, enhancing the safe operation of the City s street network and reducing the potential for crashes. Traffic signals are also flexible traffic management tools. They can be programmed to move large volumes of traffic along a major arterial, to handle large volumes of turning vehicles, or to favor pedestrian movements. Traffic signals can provide priority to emergency vehicles responding to service calls. Regardless of whether a citizen is driving a car, riding a bus, riding a bike, or walking, they utilize traffic signals in their daily activities. New traffic signal equipment at the Duncan-Windsor intersection. 2.2 City Traffic Signal System Defined. The City traffic signal system is defined as all traffic signals located within the City. A traffic signal consists of the traffic signal equipment and other related appurtenances such as underground electrical conduit and concrete foundations. The traffic signal system does not include improvements to intersections that are often designed and constructed in conjunction with traffic signals as part of a project. These additional improvements include pavement related to the addition of left or right turn lanes, storm sewer or pavement related to the realignment of the curb around corners, the installation of sidewalks or sidewalk ramps, and new pavement markings and signs. These other improvements become part of other City systems once the project is completed. City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

7 2 3.0 BACKGROUND 3.1 Quantity of Existing Traffic Signals. There are currently 110 traffic signals within the City. There are several different ownership situations regarding the construction, maintenance, and replacement of traffic signals. Each ownership situation is briefly described in the following sections City-owned Traffic Signals. There are currently 66 City-owned traffic signals. The City owns and maintains 59 traffic signals located at the intersection of two or more City streets along with five signal installations along State routes that are the responsibility of the City. In both cases, the City is solely responsible for the installation, maintenance, and eventual replacement of the equipment. The projects to install or replace the traffic signal equipment are funded and managed by the City. Two of these 66 traffic signals are Fire Station Signals. These signals are located at the intersection of the fire station driveway with a City street and provide protection to fire equipment responding to and returning from an emergency call. Some of these 66 City-owned signals include a private driveway or street that is opposite a City street. The cost sharing arrangements for these locations vary and are outlined in agreements between the City and the property owner negotiated and approved at the time of the installation of the traffic signal. The location of City-owned traffic signals is illustrated in Exhibit 1 of Appendix A Traffic Signals along State Routes. A traffic signal located at the intersection of two streets both under the jurisdiction of IDOT is owned by the State. There are 11 traffic signals located at the intersection of two State Routes. The State is responsible for the installation, maintenance, and eventual replacement of the equipment. The projects to install or replace the traffic signal equipment are funded and managed by IDOT. The City provides maintenance services for IDOT signals within the City through an intergovernmental agreement. The City is reimbursed for those maintenance services. During projects installing or replacing traffic signal equipment, the City is involved in the process and has the opportunity to add desired features above the typical IDOT traffic signal installation at the City s cost. There are also 31 intersections where a City street and/or private drive intersects a State route. Of these, five are the sole responsibility of the City as a result of conditions agreed upon by the City and State at the time of installation. The installations were all related to development. For the remaining 26 intersections, the costs associated with the traffic signals are divided proportionally by the number of approaches under the jurisdiction of each agency. The projects to install or replace the equipment are managed by IDOT and funding is shared between the City and IDOT. Maintenance services are provided by the City, with IDOT reimbursing the City for their proportional share of the costs. City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

8 3 The locations of the various situations outlined above appear in Exhibit 1 of Appendix A Traffic Signals Owned by the University of Illinois The University of Illinois owns seven traffic signals, three of which are located at an intersection of a City street, Kirby Avenue. The City maintains these three traffic signals through an intergovernmental agreement and is reimbursed for maintenance activities related to the signals. The remaining four traffic signals are maintained by the University. The University is solely responsible for the costs associated with the installation, maintenance and replacement of the traffic signal equipment located at these intersections. The location of University-owned traffic signals is illustrated in Exhibit 1 of Appendix A Interconnect In order for traffic signals to be simultaneously programmed and consistently work together, they must be interconnected. This connection is usually through a physical wire or fiber optic cable that connects the traffic signals at several intersections along a specific street. The City also has two interconnects that utilize wireless technologies. The intersections all communicate with a master controller, which acts as a hub for communicating with the various signals in the group, similar to a network server with individual desktop computers. The master controller has several functions. It tells the individual intersections when to run various signal timing plans. It can register the emergency vehicle preemption call from one intersection and direct the other intersections to respond accordingly. It ensures that the clocks at each intersection are in synch with one another so that coordinated timing plans operate as intended. Through the use of software and a phone connection, it serves as the point of contact from the office for investigating reports of malfunctions and to make changes to timing plans. It can also be programmed to call the office computer and report on the operation of intersections on a regular basis. There are currently 8 groups of signals interconnected, representing 49 of the 110 traffic signals in the City. Communication between these groups and the office are provided by phone drops to the master controllers. The North Prospect group, consisting of 12 traffic signals, is directly wired to the office. A map illustrating the 8 signal groups is illustrated in Exhibit 2 of Appendix A. Interconnected signals along North Neil Street near Interstate 74. City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

9 4 3.2 Traffic Signal Design and Construction Standards. There are Federal and State standards related to traffic signals in addition to City standards and preferences Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) The MUTCD is the National Standard for traffic control devices, including traffic signals, as adopted by the Federal Highway Administration. Part 4 of the MUTCD deals with traffic signals, outlining where traffic signals can and should be installed through a series of warrants, and also outlining various design elements related to placement of signal equipment and the operation of traffic signals. All traffic signal projects are required to conform to the MUTCD IDOT Bureau of Design and Environment Manual (BDE) The BDE is the State manual for the design of various infrastructure items, including traffic signals and intersections. Chapter 14 - Intersection Design Studies, and Chapter 36 - Intersections, outline design guidelines related to traffic signals and intersection projects. Other chapters may apply to various projects. The City typically utilizes IDOT guidelines and projects funded with Motor Fuel Tax (MFT) dollars are required to be designed per IDOT guidelines IDOT Standard Specifications for Road and Bridge Construction The Standard Specifications are a collection of IDOT requirements for the construction of various types of infrastructure, including traffic signals. Many sections are utilized during traffic signal projects, covering everything from traffic control to sidewalk. Section 800 Electrical outlines the construction and material requirements for traffic signal equipment. The City utilizes these specifications, augmenting them as necessary to address City needs and preferences City of Champaign Design Standards The City has a number preferences related to traffic signal design, traffic signal equipment, and traffic signal operation. When the Manual of Practice was developed, some of these items were included in Chapter 14 Traffic Signal Standards. Although many of these still apply, some have changed or additional items added since that time from experiences and with the development of new technologies. On each project, the specifications from the last traffic signal project are utilized as a starting point, editing and adding to them as needed for the current project. Standard Black traffic signal hardware (except cabinet) Countdown pedestrian signals Internally illuminated street name signs Table 3-1 City of Champaign Design Standards Comment The interior of a cabinet painted black gets very hot in the summer. The extremely high temperatures reduce the anticipated life of the electronic equipment in the cabinet. Improves comprehension of Walk/ Flashing Don t Walk. Adopted in Sign Master Plan. City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

10 5 Standard Video detection Emergency vehicle pre-emption Light Emitting Diode (LED) signal indications Enhanced grounding system Electrical service installation additions Street lighting photocell location Combination mast arms Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) Lower right signal indications for east-west streets Interconnection with adjacent traffic signals Comment Provide detection without compromising integrity of pavement. Can be serviced without extended lane closures. Provides priority to fire equipment. Have measured about a 75% savings in power consumption over incandescent bulbs. Longer life cycle reduced service calls. Provides additional protection from lighting strikes. Reduces clutter at intersection and provide power to intersection lighting. Provided on cabinet to help with testing/troubleshooting lighting problems. Provide intersection lighting. Maintains signal operation or all-red flash during power outages. Improves signal visibility when sun is directly behind mast arm mounted signals in morning and evening. Maintains integrity of coordinated signal timings. Provides communication back to Public Works. 3.3 Condition of Existing Traffic Signals. After compiling and reviewing a list of the existing traffic signals within the City, it became clear that traffic signal technologies made significant advances in the late 1980 s and early 1990 s. Advances in traffic signal equipment and hardware continue today. Traffic signal installations within the last 15 years closely resemble those built today and satisfy, or are close to satisfying, current design standards and hardware requirements. The following table breaks down the ages of the 66 current City-owned traffic signal installations as of Table 3-2 Age Distribution of City-owned Traffic Signals Age Number of Signals Total 66 City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

11 Condition Ratings for City-owned Signals. Intersections signalized or replaced in the last 15 years are generally in good condition and satisfy current design practices. Intersections over 30 years old are generally in poor condition and do not satisfy current design practices. The intersections in the 15 to 30-year range fall somewhere between the two groups. Based on these general observations, a determination was made to take a closer look at all traffic signals 15 years old, or older. For the purposes of this master plan the life of a traffic signal installation is estimated to be about 40 years. This is based on the anticipated life of mast arms, foundations, and electrical conduit. At the 20-year mark, the remainder of the above ground and electrical equipment has met the end of its useful life and should be replaced to maintain reliability through the second 20-year period. The reality of these life cycles depends on advances in technology, changes in design practices, and changes in traffic volumes and patterns. Any of these areas could shorten the effective life of portions of, or the entire, installation, especially change to traffic volumes as the result of development. As an example, it is anticipated that a project will need to improve the intersection of First Street and Windsor Road because it has become inadequate for the increased traffic along Windsor Road, as well as increases anticipated from the development of the University s Research Park and other developments to the south in Savoy. Conditions were rated for all traffic signal installations over 15 years old. In general, the ratings were based on the following: Table 3-3 Traffic Signal Ratings Defined Rating Conditions Generally Observed Poor Lack of mast arms 30+ year old wiring and conduits Geometric deficiencies related to delay or safety issues Fair Mast arms present Signal hardware about 20 years old Operational deficiencies related to signal equipment (detection or cabinet limitations) Good Mast arms present Newer installation or recently upgraded May need a minor equipment upgrades (e.g. video detection or cabinet) but remainder had been upgraded recently Example of an 40+ year old traffic signal post. City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

12 7 The results are summarized below. Table 3-4 Summary of Signal Ratings Rating Number of Signals Poor 15 Fair 4 Good 6 Total 25 Note: Includes ratings for 24 signals over 15 years old and the intersection of First & Windsor. A map illustrating where these signals are located is included in Exhibit 3 of Appendix A and the individual intersection summary sheets are included in Appendix B. Some general observations of the results are: There are 15 traffic signals that need to be replaced. Of the 15, 10 are Downtown. There are 8 traffic signals that need to be upgraded in some way. Poor intersections are generally over 40 years old. Ten of the 15 are located Downtown and two are located on Campus. Most of the intersections appear new above ground but the wiring and conduit conditions still compromise reliability. If the material encasing the copper wire fails it could result in a short or cause the signal posts to become electrified. If the intersection were to fail due to a wiring problem, it would not be feasible to pull new wire through the conduit to keep the signal in operation due to the condition of the conduits. The conduits are either collapsed, or full of dirt, mud, or other debris. The intersection would require overhead wiring until the conduit could be replaced or would remain inoperable. This scenario currently exists at the intersection of First and Green. First and Green wiring failure solution overhead and along the side of the utility pole Condition of IDOT Signals. The 37 signals shared or owned solely by IDOT were not rated for this master plan. A general look at the age of the traffic signal equipment indicates that IDOT does not have any traffic signal installations with equipment over 20 years old. As a result, most of these intersections would likely have been rated in good condition by the rating system used to rate City signals. In the late 1980 s and 1990 s, IDOT participated in a federal program referred to as Operation Green Light, which provided funds to upgrade or rehabilitate traffic signals. This program funded a large portion of the costs of various traffic signal projects in Champaign along State routes, with IDOT and the City funding a small percentage. Operation Green Light has since been discontinued and the current practice is to upgrade signals when there is a safety issue, or City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

13 8 as part of a larger scale projects such as road projects or intersection projects changing the geometry of the intersection. 3.4 Prior Council Actions Traffic Signal Master Plan Study Session July 12, Council reviewed and approved the list of the top 20 needed improvements to existing signalized intersections, as well as a list of ten locations in the City that were potential locations for new traffic signals. Council also directed staff to continue to let traffic signal projects compete for funding in the capital improvements plan on their own merits and construct signals in conjunction with road projects Traffic Signal Master Plan Adoption Council Bill On August, 2, 1994, Council adopted the 1994 Traffic Signal Master Plan Approval of Contracts for Projects Included the 1994 Master Plan Various. Since 1994, Council has approved various Council Bills, approving contracts for engineering and construction of various traffic signal projects outlined in the 1994 master plan (some were part of larger road projects). Of the replacement 20 projects identified in the 1994 master plan, 9 have been completed. Of the 10 new signal locations identified in the 1994 master plan, 8 have been installed. These locations are listed in the following table: Table 3-5 Traffic Signal Projects Completed Included in 1994 Traffic Signal Master Plan Year Completed Locations Rank in 1994 Plan (if a Replacement) or New 1994 Marketview & Moreland New Prospect & Windsor New 1995 Prospect & Town Center New 1996 Bradley & Market #12 Bradley & Neil #1 Bradley & Randolph New Bradley & State New Prospect & Kirby # Mattis & Windsor New 2000 Bradley & Clayton New Bradley & Country Fair New 2001 First & University #9 Mattis & John # Green & Sixth #13 Green & Fourth #4 Prospect & Green # Church/Main & Neil #20 City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

14 Other Traffic Signal Installations Various. Since 1994, Council has approved the installation of traffic signals at 19 other intersections of two City streets through the approval of annexation agreements, development agreements, and/or engineering and construction contracts. Most, if not all of the installations, were related to new development. These locations are listed in the following table: Table 3-6 Traffic Signal Installations Not included in 1994 Traffic Signal Master Plan Year Installed Locations Reason 1995 Bloomington & Hagan Development Bloomington & Home Depot Development Prospect & Baytowne Development Prospect & Marketview Development Prospect & Meijer Development Prospect & Lowe s Development 1997 Windsor & Galen Development University & Chestnut Illinois Terminal Project 1999 Neil & Center Mall Expansion Project Duncan & Kirby Growth 2002 Sixth & John Identified through CATS 2003 Prospect & Olympian Development/Growth Mattis & Olympian Development/Growth 2004 Neil & Town Center Development/Growth 2005 Prospect & Wal-Mart Development Prospect & Interstate Development/Growth Staley & Kirby Installed by the County Duncan & Windsor Development/Growth In addition, Council approved various agreements between the City and IDOT regarding cost share arrangements on projects to install or replace traffic signals along State routes within the City Traffic Signal Maintenance Agreement with IDOT On June 5, 2001, Council approved Council Bill , approving an agreement between the City and IDOT for the maintenance of traffic signals along State routes. The agreement is effective until June 30, The agreement outlines the level of maintenance required of the City, the cost sharing arrangements for energy costs related to traffic signal installations along State routes, details regarding billing, signal timing development and implementation, pavement markings and emergency vehicle preemption. The City of Champaign was the lead agency in renegotiating several key points of the agreement relative to the past maintenance agreements: City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

15 10 Under the current agreement, the State pays 100% of its share of the energy costs, which are determined by the number of approaches under the jurisdiction of IDOT; under previous agreements the local agencies were responsible for all energy costs. A multiplier for wages was added to include direct and indirect labor costs, retirement, social security, health, hospitalization and life insurance, holidays, vacation, sick leave and workers compensation; resulting in the City being able to bill IDOT at a higher rate than under previous maintenance agreements. The standards for maintenance were changed to more closely reflect what is required for modern signal equipment; the old agreement was based on what was required for equipment from 1980, which is now obsolete. The length of the maintenance agreement was reduced from 20 years to 10 years; this was based on the fact that signal technology continues to evolve and the terms of the agreement need to be revisited more than once every 20 years. The maintenance agreement is included in Appendix C. 4.0 CURRENT TRAFFIC SIGNAL SERVICE ACTIVITIES 4.1 Personnel & Budget The purpose of this section is to outline current job duties of the various personnel associated with traffic signals and outline the funding levels for traffic signal activities Personnel The vast majority of current activities are carried out by the Traffic and Lighting Section of Engineering and a Civil Engineer II. The exception would be the management of larger scale projects that may include traffic signal replacements or installations. In these cases, the personnel described below are often asked for input, to review plans, and/or to set up the intersection settings once the traffic signal is installed. Electrical Technicians The City has four electrical technicians responsible for the maintenance of traffic signals and street lighting. All four work on traffic signals at one time or another. Taking into account time off for vacation, sick leave, training, and breaks, each electrical technician accounts for 1,580 regular working hours. The Engineering Division timesheet program reports from the last two full fiscal years indicate that between 50% and 60% of this available work time is devoted to traffic signals. This translates to roughly one technician for every 53 traffic signals maintained. For discussion purposes in this document, the average over the last two fiscal years of 56% of available working hours spent on traffic signals will be used. Currently work activities are tracked through the Traffic and Lighting Activity Manager. Information on the number and types of tasks is entered, but the information does not include the number of hours associated with each task. It is useful in City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

16 11 identifying how many recurring tasks are completed and includes descriptions of work performed. The shortcoming of the system is that the amount of hours spent on various types of work is not available. In lieu of available information, annual hours spent on various activities have been estimated using available information and estimates provided by staff regarding various work activities for use in later sections. The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) guidelines for electrical technician staffing are in the neighborhood of one technician for every 40 to 50 traffic signals. This number depends on the complexity of the intersections and the level of maintenance desired. Champaign s staffing level for electrical technicians is between 75% and 95% of ITE guidelines. Traffic and Lighting Supervisor The Traffic and Lighting Supervisor plans the work of four electrical technicians and three sign workers. Using the timesheet program as a source, it is estimated that approximately 50% of the Traffic and Lighting Supervisor s time is dedicated to traffic signals, with the remainder of time allocated to signs, pavement markings, and street light management. In addition to supervisory and administrative duties related to traffic signals, the supervisor position is currently responsible for the diagnostics and repair of controllers and other electronic devices located in the controller cabinet. This person also tests incoming equipment, participates in plan review for traffic signals, programs traffic signal timings and occasionally works in the field with the technicians to return equipment to normal operation. ITE refers to the person responsible for these duties as a Traffic Signal Engineer and estimates that one full time traffic signal engineer per 100 signals is sufficient. Champaign s staffing level for Traffic Signal (Engineer) Supervisor is about half of the ITE recommended level. Traffic and Lighting Technician The Traffic and Lighting Technician screens underground locate requests to determine if they are in conflict with traffic signal infrastructure, maintains the work activity database and maps detailing the location of underground signal facilities, processes material orders and produces invoices for maintenance performed on IDOT and University traffic signals. City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

17 12 These duties can be characterized as support activities. In the ITE guidelines, these duties are not mentioned in any of the descriptions for traffic signal personnel. It is estimated that approximately 20% of the Traffic and Lighting Technician s time is dedicated to traffic signals. Civil Engineer II A Civil Engineer II is assigned to traffic signal related work activities. The duties of this position include: managing engineering design consultants and contractors for traffic signal replacement and traffic signal installation projects developing and maintaining traffic signal timings performing traffic signal warrant studies developing the traffic signal master plan providing input as requested on development issues related to traffic signals investigating complaints related to signal timings working with the Traffic and Lighting Supervisor to identify upgrade and design modification projects. It is estimated that approximately 25 to 30% of the Civil Engineer II s time is dedicated to traffic signal related work, consisting of both capital improvement projects and traffic signal operational items such as traffic signal timing development. The time spent on traffic signal projects varies year to year, depending on the scope of active projects. Some years the percentage of available staff time has been much lower due to time demands on other projects or work activities. Until the last few months, time spent on traffic signals timings and addressing traffic signal issues outside of capital improvement projects was not tracked individually, but instead was included in the general description of traffic management, which also included Traffic Service Requests. These two work activities are now tracked separately, which will allow for future evaluations of Civil Engineer II time spent on traffic signal operations. ITE refers to the engineer level staff as a Traffic Engineer. Under the ITE model the traffic engineer is responsible for traffic signal design, keeping equipment up with technology, signal timing plans, and administration of signal installations and maintenance. ITE estimates that one traffic engineer can properly operate and maintain 75 to 100 traffic signals. A survey of 23 cites conducted by ITE found an average of one traffic engineer per 76 signals. Champaign s staffing level for Traffic (Civil II) Engineer is about between 25% and 30% of the ITE recommended level. City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

18 Budget The potential annual funding resources for traffic signals are outlined in the following table. Table 4-1 Estimated Funding for Traffic Signals 1 FY Line Item Description Amount Traffic Signals - Materials $38, Utilities Power 2 $71, Utilities Phone $1, Electrical Standby 3 $17, Electrical OT 2 $10, Repair and Maintenance Services $2, Miscellaneous Contractual 4 $ Traffic Signal Upgrade CIP Project $136,510 Estimated Electrical Technician Staffing Costs 5 $132,209 Estimated Staffing Costs 5 $55,623 Estimated Equipment Usage Costs 5 $44,480 Total $510,062 1 Outlines maintenance and upgrade funding; does not include individual one-time funding from CIP projects to install or rehabilitate traffic signals. Traffic Signal Upgrade Project funding level varies from year to year. 2 The line items for electricity and overtime include funding for both traffic signals and street lighting. The electricity budget is updated annually with the previous year s expenditures serving as the basis for the funding level. The amounts shown here only reflect anticipated costs related to traffic signals. 3 Electrical Standby provides an on-call electrician on weekends. The IDOT maintenance agreement calls for skilled maintenance personnel available for emergency calls. 4 Misc. Contractual is generally used for pavement marking contracts and boring work or painting for street lighting. It is also available for painting of traffic signals or other work that would be contracted out. This is not anticipated to be used for traffic signals. 5 Based on IDOT Billing Rate. These costs are funded through several line items that include funding for the entire Traffic & Lighting Section. The funding directly related to traffic signals for these items is not identifiable. The operating budget for Traffic and Lighting is updated annually. From year to year, depending on the needs and priorities identified for the section, the budgeted amount in a given line item may fluctuate, but generally the operating budget as a whole is relatively stable. Several of these line items include funding related to street lighting and/or traffic signs and markings; for those line items, only the portion anticipated for use on traffic signals is shown in the table. Also, funds can be transferred from one line item to another to address unforeseen needs during the course of the fiscal year. 4.2 Maintenance. An effective maintenance program is essential to the successful performance of any traffic control system. A poorly maintained traffic signal system can compromise the safe and efficient movement of traffic. As is the case with most equipment, signal systems that are neglected will likely perform inefficiently and experience premature failure, which could lead to traffic delay or be a contributing factor in traffic crashes. The City maintains 106 traffic signals. Of these, 66 are City-owned, 37 are IDOT or IDOT- City traffic signals, and three are University of Illinois traffic signals. For all of these signals, the City provides two types of maintenance: response maintenance and preventative City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

19 14 maintenance. Incurred costs associated with IDOT and University traffic signals are billed to those entities based upon maintenance agreements. The list of equipment maintained as part of a traffic signal includes electronic components located within the controller cabinet, the information contained in the controller itself, underground conduit and wiring, signal hardware such as posts, mast arms and signal heads, internally illuminated street name signs, and emergency preemption. In addition, the timing plans in the controllers must also be maintained and updated periodically. Maintenance also includes electricity, communications, staff and equipment. The current estimated annual cost outlay of the City for maintenance of the existing 106 traffic signals the City is responsible for is $373,552, or about $3,500 per intersection. Appendix C outlines how this estimate was determined and also provides estimates of corresponding reimbursements from other agencies. The guts of a traffic signal cabinet. The staff hour estimates in this report are based on a combination of available billing information, timesheet reports and entries in the Traffic and Lighting Activity Manager. Because the Activity Manager does not track the number of hours it takes to perform various tasks and is also dependent upon the information entered, this information was estimated by staff. A breakdown of the electrical technician hours spent maintaining the 106 traffic signals the City is currently responsible for is outlined in the following table: City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

20 15 Table 4-2 Maintenance Hours Breakdown Response Maintenance Activities Regular Extra Hours Hours Accident Response * Lamp Changes 400 Power Failures (stop sign placement) * Preemption Issues 58 Repairing/ Replacing Failed Hardware * Preventative Maintenance Activities Drive Thru Inspection 430 UPS Battery Maintenance 120 Controller Cabinet 80 Clock Setting for TBC 14 Video Detection 135 Pedestrian Push Button Testing/Repair 260 Preemption 200 Standby Hours** Response Maintenance Total Preventative Maintenance Total 1,239 0 Total 2, *Overtime ** On weekends, one electrician is on standby to respond to response maintenance calls. Standby is paid at the regular hourly rate. The City s purchase of equipment for the maintenance of all traffic signals the City maintains whether they are the City s, IDOT s or the University s, is funded by the operating budget of the Traffic and Lighting Section of the Engineering Division. This consists of one line item (Traffic Signals ) with an annual amount around $35,000 available. This amount can be adjusted on an annual basis and, if needed, funds can be transferred from other line items, as identified in Section Response Maintenance Response maintenance consists of responding to reports of traffic signal malfunctions and damage to traffic signals caused by traffic accidents, storm events, or by some other means. When possible, these activities are conducted during the regular work day. However, by the very nature of response maintenance, events such as crashes and storm events occur outside of regular hours. Coverage outside of regular work hours is provided on a 24-hour basis through the use of pagers, on-call personnel and electrical technician standby for weekend duty. The most common type of response maintenance outside regular work hours is a traffic signal knockdown as a result of an accident. For each of these, the Traffic and Lighting Technician receives a crash report, costs associated with the City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

21 16 repairs are tracked, and the responsible party is billed for the costs. This procedure results in an accurate record of costs associated with response maintenance related to traffic accidents since the start of FY The information was summarized to calculate the staff hours and annual costs associated with traffic accidents over the last 5 years. Fiscal Year Incidents Table 4-3 Accident Response Data FY 01 through FY04 Electrician Labor and Electrician Hours Equipment Hours (OT) (Reg.) Costs Material & Contractor Costs* Total Billed** $4,766 $15,153 $19, $8,291 $13,983 $22, $1,355 $5,036 $6, $10,641 $17,069 $27,710 Average $6,263 $12,810 $19,073 *A contractor is required in cases where mast arms have to be replaced. **The amount billed to the third party and reimbursed to the City includes costs for labor, equipment usage, materials, and contractor costs. The costs and hours outlined in the table represent: The initial response, which removes damaged equipment and secures electrical wiring; in some cases the traffic signals can still operate. If a knockdown occurs outside of regular hours, this activity requires overtime. Shop preparation or fabrication of signal posts, signal heads, cabinets, etc. for installation during regular hours. Field procedures to install the replacement equipment during regular work hours. The City is often times reimbursed for these costs. However, the reimbursement is not returned to the operating budget; they are considered general revenues. The operating budget absorbs the costs of repairs from crashes. In cases of controller cabinet or mast arm damage, Traffic and Lighting may work with the City s Risk Manager to fund the repairs, as the cost of these items is significant enough that the operating budget may not be able to absorb the costs Preventative Maintenance Preventative maintenance is defined as a set of checks and procedures to be performed at regular scheduled intervals for the upkeep of traffic signal equipment. Preventative maintenance includes inspection, record keeping, cleaning, and replacement based on the function and rated service life of the components. Activities such as cabinet inspections, cabinet cleaning, and hardware maintenance are performed, but occur as staff availability permits rather than on a calendar interval. The amount of preventative maintenance performed in a given year is dependent on amount of staff time spent on response maintenance calls and street lighting work. City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

22 Electricity Ameren IP currently provides electrical service for traffic signals through 91 separate service connections. The following table illustrates the annual estimated electrical costs billed to the City for traffic signals: Table 4-4 Annual Electrical Service Cost Estimate (FY 2006) Amount Billed for Signals on State Routes $49,000 Amount Billed for Intersection of City Streets $22,000 Total $71,000 The electricity costs of each traffic signal installation vary from one to another depending on the size of the intersection, the equipment present at that location, and whether intersection lighting and/or other street lighting are included on the same electrical service. Each service connection is billed individually. In addition to the energy charges, there is also a service connection fee for each. In order to minimize service connection costs, it is to the City s benefit to combine service connections when possible. For each new traffic signal installation, energy use is metered to determine the amount of electricity used over a set time period to calculate an unmetered service billing rate. The information is shared with the utility company and an agreed upon monthly charge for the intersection is established. In the event that conditions change at the intersection, the location may be metered again and a new monthly charge established. The most common example of this occurred during the replacement of 1,076 incandescent signal indications with Light Emitting Diode (LED) indications over the past few years at 44 City-owned intersections through a grant from the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation. The switch to LED s resulted in a 73% overall reduction in power consumption at those 44 intersections. This change resulted in a reduction in consumption of 28,257 kilowatt hours per month and a corresponding reduction in the overall billing. The City has been awarded a second grant to convert the remaining IDOT intersection to LEDs, which will result in a further reduction in electricity costs. IDOT is reimbursing the City for the labor costs associated with the effort. LED signals. LED signal indications at State and Church. The electricity costs are funded through the Utilities Power line item in the Traffic & Lighting operating budget ( ). Additional information regarding the calculation of the electrical costs is included in Appendix C. City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006

23 Phone Charges The City currently has six phone services that provide remote communication to signal systems. These services allow staff to send and receive data with the traffic signals within these interconnected systems from Public Works. These costs are funded through the Utilities Phone line item in the Traffic & Lighting operating budget ( ). The following table illustrates the annual estimated phone charges for these services: Table 4-5 Annual Phone Service Cost Estimate (FY 2006) Amount Billed for State-City Systems $1,080 Amount Billed for City Systems $800 Total $1,880 Additional information regarding the calculation of the phone charge estimates is included in Appendix C IDOT Billing Under the provisions of the maintenance agreement, the City generates invoices for electricity, phone charges, and maintenance activity costs for the 37 traffic signals and signal systems that are wholly or partially owned by IDOT on a quarterly basis. The funds received from IDOT are deposited in the City s general fund. The Traffic & Lighting Technician is responsible for generating these invoices. Maintenance tasks for IDOT intersections are tracked in the activity manager and a summary is prepared for each activity. In addition to the activity manager information the sheet includes a detail of the staff time spent, equipment used, and materials utilized along with a total cost. The cost sharing arrangements for this work are outlined in Exhibit A of the maintenance agreement, which is included in Appendix C of this report. In general, the costs for individual intersections are shared proportionally based on the number of approaches under the jurisdiction of each agency. As of 2006, there are five intersections that are exceptions to this arrangement, where the City is responsible for 100% of the costs. In all five cases, the traffic signal was installed as a result of new development, where the development required the traffic signal installation. The State does not pay for costs associated with private benefit signals. Based on available information for 2005, the City spent 400 hours on maintenance of traffic signals located along State routes. The following table outlines the costs associated with annual maintenance of traffic signals along State routes, and the corresponding share of those costs for the City and IDOT. Table 4-6 Maintenance Costs for Signals on State Routes (2005) Total Cost of Maintenance Along State Routes $23,000 City s Share of Costs $6,500 IDOT s Share of Costs $16,500 City of Champaign Traffic Signal Master Plan June 2006