ST. GEORGE — During the next several years, the city of St. George has plans to install traffic signals at various intersections throughout the town.
For the past four months, the city has focused its efforts on where it may place the new signals in the future. Cameron Cutler, public works director for the city, told St. George News the current map is approximately one to two years old, so it was time for a refresh.
There are 15 intersections currently being considered for a signal.
“Some of them are much farther away to warrant a traffic signal than others,” Cutler said, adding that the signal at 1140 South and 3000 East is currently being built and that it will be a “great relief when the stop signs are down.”
The process of determining where a traffic signal may be installed is based on several federal criteria, including traffic flow, pedestrian use, school crossings and a history of traffic accidents.
“Essentially if we have a crossroad – residential or commercial – we look at it,” Cutler said. “Basically, we conduct an engineering study that looks at geometrics, sight distance problems, accidents, volumes (of traffic at varying intervals) anything, and you go through the warrants and match them up.”
By law, if an intersection meets any of the nine federal criteria, a traffic signal may be justified; however, if an intersection meets multiple criteria, there is a better likelihood for a potential signal.
“If you find an intersection that is between other signals and it’s just not getting the traffic through, and you can’t get out on a side street, it may never warrant a traffic signal,” Cutler said and cited the intersection of 200 East and 700 South, where there is no signal. He said the intersection would likely never receive the volume of traffic necessary to warrant a signal.
Every situation is different, Cutler said.
“We don’t go out and count the traffic all the time, but we usually do this two or three times a year,” he said. “Traffic really doesn’t change that much.”
The city uses manual counts during peak hours, along with a specialized camera that records the traffic flow and pedestrian use.
“We budget a couple of thousand dollars each year, and we send it off to a company for approximately $130 and they count the traffic flow,” Cutler said. “It’s a lot cheaper than to have someone stand out at a site for two days.”
One intersection that St. George Mayor Jon Pike said they receive calls about is on Mall Drive: the left turn onto Riverside Drive.
“We’re getting a lot of questions here,” Pike said. “It’s getting busy, especially during certain times of the day. This is something we hear about. Although this is something specific, we hear about these types of issues all the time.”
Although not budgeted for this year, the city has plans to widen the Mall Drive roadway and install dual-left turns at this intersection. Based on future development, another possible location for a signal is Dixie Drive and Canyon View Drive.
“If this develops commercially – and it looks like it’s going to – we very well need a traffic signal there,” Cutler said. “Most of the time if it’s commercial development on a busy road, it will warrant a traffic signal. It’s a planned location at Canyon View.”
Future locations of traffic signals
- 3000 East and 1140 South.
- Dixie Drive and 540 North.
- Dixie Drive and 100 North.
- Dixie Drive and Stonebridge Drive.
- Dixie Drive and Sunbrook Drive.
- Dixie Drive and Canyon View Drive.
- Snow Canyon Parkway and 2000 North.
- Snow Canyon Parkway and 1400 North.
- 2450 East and 450 North.
- Sunset Boulevard and Tuweap Drive.
- Mall Drive and 40 North.
- Riverside Drive and Morningside Drive.
- Sun River Parkway and Pioneer Road.
- Sun River Parkway and Arrowhead Canyon Drive.
- Riverside Drive and Sunland Drive.
To view a map of the above, click here.
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