New traffic control tech sees success at Lawrence County intersection

WALNUT RIDGE, Ark. (KAIT) - A set of new technology in Lawrence County is seeing some success when it comes to traffic control.

Arkansas Department of Transportation District 10 crews installed new traffic control technology in Lawrence County in February.

Since then, Engineer Brad Smithee has kept an eye on how the new technology handles traffic at different times.

The new devices at the intersection of Highway 63 and 91 use radar and camera components to detect vehicles from all directions.

Smithee explained after seeing the success of the new devices, it is something his district will be using more.

“We realize this technology should give us some very good traffic signal detection because it brings in that extra component of speed coming toward that signal,” he said. “It’s just another layer that helps a signal to recognize what traffic is doing as it approaches it.”

Smithee said crews from the state office in Little Rock would be coming soon to perform finishing touches on the radar camera units.

“We’ve asked them to take a special look at just the way traffic is functioning with the setup. Now, we hope we can make some final adjustments and tune it a bit more to what’s happening at that signal,” he said.

Smithee explained this technology is the first of its kind in Northeast Arkansas.

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