Drivetime Mahatma

Waited six light cycles on LR road

Dear Mahatma: What is with the red lights at the new overpass and the one south of it on Shackleford? We were headed north on Shackleford, were stopped at Hermitage and it took us six (6) lights to get through. Can't these lights be synchronized? Would appreciate some help here. -- Stuck in Traffic

Dear Stuck: Joe Sartini, engineer, chief cook and bottle washer for District 6 of the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department, told all.

The Highway Department, he said, determined that a detector had gone bad.

(This reminds us of what Mark Twain said about newspapermen: Respectability ruined more of them than drink ever did. We promise to remain disrespectful.)

When a detector goes bad, or fails, the adaptive system uses historical data for that movement or cycle of the traffic lights. This may lead to lost time for some movements. This, Sartini said, coupled with a single northbound lane, contributed to the congestion.

But of course our reader is less interested in the computer dynamics of traffic control than he is in how the doggone thing will be fixed.

Sartini said the problem detector was identified and a fix is in progress. Even better, the second northbound lane has been opened, and traffic appears to be moving well with no "residual queues." He also said the signal at Financial Centre and Shackleford is coordinated with the signals to the west, north and south.

He did not say, because we forgot to ask, why Financial Centre has that funky British spelling.

Hey: Rumor has it that the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department installed electric heating strips in the concrete at the Big Rock flyovers to avoid slippery conditions with ice or snow. True or false? -- Hockeytown 430/630

Dear Hockey: If only. As if.

The truth, told by David Nilles, who speaks for the Highway Department, is that a new bellyplow has been dedicated to Interstate 430 and its interchange with Interstate 630.

The Big Rock Interchange is the state's busiest with about 200,000 vehicles a day. Completion is expected in early 2015.

Dear Mahatma: Working downtown can be exciting, especially for drivers and pedestrians who have to contend with the city buses. Those things are big -- and fast. Sometimes the drivers don't seem to heed those pesky yellow and red lights. What to do? -- Quick on My Feet

Dear Quick: Jarod Varner is the chief executive guy at Central Arkansas Transit Authority. He said folks communicate with the agency in a couple of ways.

The most frequently used option is the primary customer service line at (501) 375-1163. Customer service agents will take the complaint or forward the caller to the operations staff. Customers can also email their compliments or complaints to info@cat.org.

Each complaint, Varner said, is investigated.

Vanity plate seen on a red VW Beetle in Texarkana: HOGWYRD.

Vanity plate seen in Little Rock: RU2CLSE.

Mahatma@arkansasonline.com

Metro on 09/20/2014

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