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Residents of Ibis and the Acreage spend nearly twice as much time in the car in the morning as residents of Boca Raton do, according to a Palm Beach Post story based on Census data that was published on Monday. Whereas the number of people who work from home nearly doubled to 15% since 2019, the vast majority of employees drive themselves to work every day. On average the drive takes about a half hour in the morning (the census did not provide data on the afternoon commutes), and though this number is down slightly from the last time they surveyed 5 years ago, it’s still close to 100 hours a year, and too much for most commuters who’d rather not be stuck in traffic.
Since coming on the dais Gregg’s been advocating for the use of technology to help solve traffic problems. Take Okeechobee Boulevard, one of the busiest roadways in the county: On a daily basis close to 70,000 drive Okeechobee Boulevard into the City of West Palm Beach. Traffic frequently backs up on the last mile, which has numerous traffic signals, two train tracks and a bridge.
Working with leaders in Tallahassee, Gregg was able to help secure a $2.7M appropriation from the state to design and implement Adaptive Traffic Control Systems (ATCS), also known as Smart Signals, on Okeechobee Boulevard from the I-95 overpass to Flagler Drive. Smart Signals use real-time traffic data to adjust the signal timing at intersections to optimize the flow of traffic and reduce congestion. After the grant was awarded, the County hired a consultant to do the preliminary work this November, and they are currently soliciting bids for the actual work. Once the contractor is selected, the job will be awarded in September and work is expected to be completed by June of next year. We are hopeful that once implemented these signals will provide some relief for commuters traveling this roadway.
Whether it is bringing Smart Signals to busy intersections, convincing the Coast Guard to reduce bridge openings, installing messaging boards to inform people about road closures at Mar-a-Lago, adjusting signal timing to improve traffic flows, requesting police presence to prevent people from blocking the box, or identifying solutions to improve travel times for commuters on Parker Avenue, Gregg has always been laser-focused on finding common-sense solutions to traffic problems.
Too often government hides behind engineering studies and procurement processes when simple solutions are available and effective. Gregg is going to continue proposing fixes, but he doesn’t have a monopoly on good ideas.
That’s why we’re trying something new. We want to hear from. Can you help us identify intersections and roads that need attention? Do you have ideas about how to improve it? Please tell us.
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