What's Happening in Princeton, MN…

The Center for Transportation Studies at the University of Minnesota (UMN) has been testing a method that will enable more vehicles to pass through an individual green light and reduce traffic backup at intersections.

The system, once perfected, will be able to maximize the efficiency of traffic flow in modest-size communities such as Princeton, as well as the largest cities in Minnesota. It is labeled max-pressure signal timing, and according to UMN researchers, it has the capacity to significantly increase traffic flow by permitting more vehicles to pass through a green light. It works via algorithm that uses real time traffic volumes at intersections to notify the controller how long and when and where to give green lights.

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Pavement sensors calculate the number of vehicles waiting, while a second sensor counts how many vehicles are approaching an intersection. The algorithm then decides how long the light needs to be green for maximum traffic flow efficiency; moreover, it recalculates every few seconds.

Using the current Hennepin County’s present traffic signal, the next step will involve “plugging-in” the max-pressure and figuring out the necessary software for deploying it. From there, a pilot project can be launched, followed by connecting multiple max-pressure using intersections to work in tandem.

University researcher Michael Levin explained that currently the algorithm is unable to communicate with other signals, which is something the team is working on.
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