John Mortensen, the city’s transportation engineering manager, told the Mobility and Infrastructure Committee on Oct. 14 that Issaquah is moving forward on multiple elements of the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) plan the City Council approved about two years ago. The administration outlined a phased feasibility study for adaptive signal control, a video analytics pilot expansion funded by a Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) grant, upgrades to signal controllers, and work to improve the city communications network.

The ITS plan’s stated mission is to improve safety, health, security and multimodal movement by using advanced technologies, agency coordination, and real-time traveler information. Mortensen said the plan identified several immediate technical gaps when the inventory was completed: about half of signal control devices had reached end of life, the communications network was roughly 10% of the speed needed for proposed devices and lacked redundancy, and many field devices could not send performance data to a central system. Those conditions, he said, produced reactive maintenance, increased overtime and constrained performance measurement.

“To get where we want — a managed, and eventually optimized, signal system — we need to be deliberate about staffing, communications and where adaptive signal control makes sense,” Mortensen said. “Adaptive signals are a tool; they are not always the right tool for every corridor.”

Why a feasibility study: Mortensen described a two-phase feasibility process for adaptive signal control. Phase 1 (data screening) will use a subscription to commercially available “big data” (connected-vehicle and cell phone datasets) to screen seven corridors; results and recommended corridors will be presented to the Transportation Advisory Board and then the Mobility and Infrastructure Committee in 2026. Phase 2 (detailed analysis) — scheduled for 2027 — would gather traffic counts and produce a Federal Highway Administration–style benefit-cost analysis to support grant applications or design decisions.

Other ITS initiatives and timing: Mortensen and staff listed several concurrent projects:
- Video analytics: a 2024 pilot at East Lake Sammamish Parkway and Issaquah Falls City Road showed promise detecting near-misses; a WSDOT grant will expand the program to 14 additional intersections, with work accelerated to 2026 from an earlier 2027 schedule.
- Leading Pedestrian Interval (LPI): assuming the Mobility Action Plan and transportation element pass as proposed, the administration plans to implement LPI in 2026 on tier-1 pedestrian corridors (arterials and collectors in Central Issaquah, Old Town and Issaquah Highlands). Mortensen emphasized upgrades to accessible pedestrian push buttons before LPI goes live so visually impaired pedestrians receive audible cues when it is safe to cross.
- Hardware upgrades: signal controllers have been updated; controller cabinets are scheduled for replacement by 2029; camera upgrades are expected to be finished by the end of 2025; dynamic message sign construction is slated for 2026. The city is replacing pavement loops with radar detectors that better detect bicyclists and perform in poor visibility, reducing pavement damage and long-term maintenance.
- Communications network work: IT is inventorying and mapping the existing network (completion targeted in 2027), designing communications upgrades including redundancy, and planning to reestablish the WSDOT connection when fiber reaches the Public Works campus.

Staffing and capacity constraints: Mortensen recapped staffing recommendations from the ITS plan that were not fully funded in the 2025–26 biennial budget. Positions called out in the plan but not added include a transportation systems analyst (for performance measurement), conversion of a transportation program coordinator from limited-term to FTE (the position expired in 2024), an additional traffic signal technician, and a half-time ITS network administrator. Emily Moon, public works director, confirmed that only one position from the plan remained fully funded and that other positions were not included in the biennial budget. Moon said the signal engineer vacancy is actively being recruited; staff are re-advertising and plan interviews in November.

Council questions and committee discussion focused on what Mortensen and staff expect to learn from the feasibility study, how adaptive signal control performs in pedestrian-priority corridors, the grant eligibility benefits of a Federal Highway Administration–style benefit-cost analysis, and whether regional partners (King County, WSDOT, City of Sammamish) are further along in similar work. Mortensen said he would follow up with the committee on the partners’ status by email.

Committee members expressed broad support for the measured, data-driven approach. Deputy Council President DeMichele asked clarifying questions about the relationship between ITS and adaptive signal control; Council Member Ray pressed on staffing and timing and suggested the pilot study be structured and outcome-focused. Council members also noted potential public-safety and liability benefits from video analytics and said reader boards could help visitor wayfinding for events scheduled in the region.

Next steps: the administration will present project objectives and performance metrics to the Transportation Advisory Board in 2026, then bring corridor recommendations back to the Mobility and Infrastructure Committee. Mortensen said, under a fastest-case scenario with local funding, design could start in 2028 with installation in 2030; if dependent on grants the schedule would be longer and contingent on grant cycles.