Aug 25, 2012

Pole arm could be final fix for the Fell/Masonic intersection

A tall pole and arm for a traffic signal were mounted last week at the southwest corner of Fell and Masonic in the Panhandle Park. By extending the traffic light for motor vehicles over the middle of Fell Street, the new signal arm is intended to create more distance between the vehicle signal and the bike signal, and thus reduce the potential for confusion (many times a day, motorists continue to turn left against a red arrow, sometimes because they only see the green light of the bike signal and the green light for vehicles. ABC7 reported on the confusion in May, and reported that 500 tickets/month were produced by the automated enforcement). The Fell/Masonic intersection got the bike signal in September 2008 and it is well-loved for providing path users with a safer way of crossing Masonic. Since the bike signal was installed, numerous small tweaks have been made to the design to improve compliance (for example, installation of the red-light camera, also visible in this photo), and this signal arm may be the biggest and best one yet.

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