Video cameras to control traffic at intersection

YOUNGSTOWN -- Beginning next year, there will be an eye in the sky keeping watch over traffic at a busy Boardman Township intersection.
An electronic video-detection controller will be installed to regulate the flow of traffic at West Boulevard and Shields Road. The new technology should help keep traffic flowing more smoothly, especially during peak hours, said Marilyn Kenner, chief deputy in the Mahoning County engineer's office.
A $392,000 federal grant will be used to pay for the project.
Kenner said video cameras will be used to keep track of the volume of traffic approaching the intersection. The traffic light timing will be constantly adjusted to keep traffic moving on whichever has the heaviest volume of vehicles.
The detection system will be tied in to a traffic light at Shields and Sheban Drive, which is just west of Shields and West, Kenner said. That way, traffic won't back up between the two intersections.
Kenner said traffic at the intersection is controlled by vehicle sensors imbedded in the pavement. That system is old, though, and in need of replacement.
Kenner said construction on the traffic signal upgrade probably won't start until sometime next year.
bjackson@vindy.com