Operation – Traffic signals within the City of Thornton are maintained by the City’s Traffic Engineering and Operations Division. These locations include:
84th Avenue Colorado Boulevard
88th Avenue Holly Street south of 128th Avenue
120th Avenue Huron Street
128th Avenue Thornton Parkway
136th Avenue Washington Street
State Highway 7
Traffic signals along 104th Avenue are also coordinated, but maintained by the City of Northglenn from I-25 to Irma Drive.
Coordinated traffic signal systems help to reduce delay and vehicular fuel consumption along corridors by allowing vehicles to travel down the corridor with as few stops as possible. This is also known as “progression” and is achieved by creating signal timing plans for each corridor. Side streets may incur some delay for progression to work. However, the overall delay along a corridor is typically minimized as a result of signal timing plans that facilitate progression.
Different signal timing plans are used throughout the day to accommodate the varying levels of traffic and in some cases, the heaviest direction of travel that occurs during each day. Signal timing plans are typically developed based on the posted speed limit. Meaning, driving at the posted speed limit typically has the greatest chance of reducing delay when traveling along a corridor.
New Traffic Signals – New traffic signals are installed in the City based upon criteria in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. These criteria have been established nationally and have been adopted by the City. The City reviews intersections that might warrant installation of a traffic signal every year. The intersections that meet the criteria are then prioritized for future installation of traffic signals.
To request a new traffic signal, please contact the Traffic Engineering and Operations Division by placing a service request or calling 720-977-6490. The intersection in question will be studied and evaluated to determine if the intersection meets the established criteria.
Traffic Signal Problems – Malfunctioning or damaged traffic signals should be reported to the Traffic Engineering and Operations Division at 720-977-6490 during normal business hours or 720-977-5150 outside normal business hours. For non-emergency reports, you may also make a request by placing a service request.
Traffic Signal Cameras – The City of Thornton uses video technology at many traffic signals within the City. The cameras at signalized intersections within the City are used for vehicle detection, so that the “brains” at each traffic signal know when vehicles are present at the intersection. Conventional vehicle detection consists of loops of wire embedded in the pavement in each lane of travel. Video detection replaces the loops for easier installation and maintenance. The cameras used within the City for video detection do not record the images or video.
|Make a Service Request for Traffic Signals|