Strongsville has been awarded a $1.4 million grant to upgrade its traffic signal system, a project that will better synchronize the lights and allow their cycles to be regulated based on traffic flow.
Mayor Tom Perciak said the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency agreed to give Strongsville $1,435,000 million to pay for the work in 2019 — not in 2022, as originally scheduled.
Engineering for the project has already been completed. City Engineer Ken Mikula said the next steps will be to find a construction manager, finalize contracts with ODOT and then bid the project.
“We were able to get funding moved up three years, which will allow us to finally get started on this project,” Perciak said.
All 57 of the city’s traffic signals will be upgraded. The project includes replacing all lights with LEDs, upgrading all pedestrian facilities to current standards and replacing or refurbishing poles so that are uniformly black in color.
Also, computer software will be upgraded so that all the signals can communicate with each other. The new centralized system will be have “adaptive” technology, so it can self-adjust in reaction to traffic volume, using a combination of video cameras, radar and traditional traffic loops.
The city has been working on the signal project since 2013, when it hired TMS Engineers to prepare plans.
Officials have been seeking funding for the project ever since.