Trumbull County acquires portable traffic signals for roadwork projects

Staff report

WARREN

The Trumbull County Engineer’s Office has acquired two portable traffic signals that will enable the department to direct traffic without human flaggers.

The devices cost $44,500, but the county acquired a $33,370 grant from the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation Division of Safety and Hygiene to help pay for them.

Greg Alberini, county highway superintendent, said the signals will be especially helpful when the engineer’s office is working on a project in which a lane of traffic needs to be closed for an entire week or month, for example.

The devices could be used at night and allow the road to stay open in circumstances in which it might normally be necessary to close the road, Alberini said.

It remains to be seen whether the devices are used on more-ordinary projects during normal work hours, Alberini said.

Using the signals also can cut down on workplace injuries, Alberini said. In some cases, drivers are distracted by their cellphones or other electronic devices, and injure a highway worker, he said.

An Ohio Department of Transportation worker was severely injured and almost died after being struck by a car a couple of summers ago in Trumbull County, Alberini noted.

Some other county highway departments in the state and some of the ODOT divisions use the devices, said Greg Wilson, sales and marketing director for American Roadway Logistics, which is the distributor for the devices.

The portable traffic signals will be ready to use as soon as training is complete, said Ken Kubala, safety and training coordinator for county Engineer Randy Smith.