Southampton City Council's transport team believes the Woodmill Bridge traffic lights are operating correctly but cannot eliminate congestion altogether because the route is “an extremely constrained part of the road network”, reports a Bitterne Park councillor.
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Phil Webb (Lab) said he had been pressing transport officers after receiving repeated complaints from residents about queues, signal timings and the operation of the route over the river..
In a detailed update, Webb said officers told him the traffic lights are demand-responsive rather than operating on fixed timers, using radar and camera technology to adjust green phases according to traffic levels and the busiest direction of travel.
He also said engineers believe drivers running red lights are contributing to delays because vehicles continuing through a red signal can reduce the efficiency of the junction.
The issue has been referred to the Road Safety team to liaise with Hampshire Police.
Webb said officers do not believe the signals are malfunctioning but accept queues will continue because traffic demand exceeds the bridge's capacity. He added that the council has agreed to review journey-time data, and he is asking for further clarification on other operational points.