At the request of David Moore of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDot) and officials in Prairie View, the traffic light at the intersection of University Drive and Owens Road has undergone some changes to correct the alleged problems it has experienced. Some Prairie View drivers have claimed that at certain times from late night to early morning the signal stalls on red for long stretches of time, tempting many to attempt to run the red light.
Officials from the Texas Department of Transportation have set up a video detection device at the intersection to help relay information and sort out the issues which have come up and see what the malfunction was, if there was any.
“We’ve asked the highway department [the maintenance office of TxDot] to see if it was malfunctioning,” commented Prairie View Mayor Frank Jackson on the city’s actions.
“Since it is a matter of safety, they usually put it on priority to correct a problem in 24 hours.”
The TxDot traffic technicians supervisor of the Houston district is David Moore. After a report filed by the city of Prairie View’s police department regarding to the light, Moore sent a TxDot crew to the intersection on March 22 to install a video detection device. He said that the “device lets a traffic controller know there is a vehicle at the stoplight.”
It seems since the changes were made, the light has indeed improved and now seems to function.
Though he never noticed a problem himself, Jackson encouraged people to report any problems at the intersection.
He said, “If anybody sees a problem, they can call the on-campus police, off-campus police, the mayor’s office, myself, or TxDot. The more eyes on the light, the better.