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TxDOT Laredo District outlines traffic-signal retiming, cameras and ITS upgrades in Eagle Pass
Summary
TxDOT reported on a retiming study of 18 intersections, five live cameras accessible to partners, and plans for expanded ITS devices including dynamic message signs and emergency-vehicle preemption.
Rafael Guzman, director of transportation operations for the Texas Department of Transportation Laredo District, briefed the Eagle Pass MPO board on recent investments in traffic-signal retiming, camera detection upgrades and intelligent transportation systems in the Eagle Pass area.
Guzman said TxDOT hired a consultant last year to retime signals at 18 intersections that showed the greatest need; the new timings have been implemented and TxDOT is making adjustments based on traffic changes and public feedback. "We started the study. We took new counts on all these intersections... a total of 18 traffic signals that were studied last year, and the consultant gave us new timings," Guzman said.
TxDOT has installed five cameras in Eagle Pass and has added communications and updated detection systems (loops and cameras) to improve remote monitoring. Guzman said the cameras are intended for incident management, not for creating permanent recordings: access to a live feed requires a simple agreement and TxDOT can share feeds with city, county, sheriff's office, police, fire and media partners through a web application called Claris.
The department also described plans to install more ITS devices, including additional cameras and dynamic message signs (DMS) to display incident and safety messages on major corridors. TxDOT staff said corridor coordination was part of the retiming work: "There's coordination on the main corridors of 2277, 57, and 375," Guzman said, explaining that coordination can reduce the number of stops drivers experience.
On emergency response, Guzman described preemption equipment installed on signals along FM 1021 and Veterans that can be triggered by emergency-vehicle emitters so responders receive a green phase when responding to calls. He told the board such equipment requires compatible emitters installed in responding vehicles and noted some fire units serving county calls already have the equipment. "We started with the signals... This was a way for us to provide that airflow for emergency vehicles," Guzman said.
Staff identified points of contact for reporting signal or sensor problems and said TxDOT maintains a local maintenance office and a district contact. Board members raised specific problem locations — including a recurring detection issue at the Del Rio Boulevard intersection and congestion on Bibb Street — and TxDOT agreed to follow up with the local maintenance crew.
Nut graf: The presentation described completed and planned technology upgrades intended to improve traffic flow, incident response and traveler information, while noting that equipment, vehicle retrofits and siting decisions will require coordination and appropriate agreements among TxDOT, the city, county and emergency services.
Ending: TxDOT agreed to share access procedures and to follow up on local maintenance requests; the MPO thanked TxDOT staff for the presentation and partnership.
