City hires firm to maintain traffic lights

DOWNEY - The city of Downey has left L.A. County Public Works and instead hired a private contractor Tuesday to maintain its nearly 100 signalized intersections.L.A. County Public Works previously serviced nearly all of Downey's traffic lights but gave notice last year that their rates would increase from $69 to $76 per intersection, and from $32 to $38 for flashing beacons (such as outside fire stations), for a total annual cost of about $92,000 each year. The county has conducted monthly preventative maintenance, made upgrades and repairs, and responded to emergency situations such as when traffic poles are knocked down. But the county was unable to maintain Downey's increasingly complex traffic signals, some of which include video detection, fiber optic communications and advanced traffic signal controllers, said John Oskoui, public works director for Downey. Instead of renewing its county contract, the City Council entered into a two-year agreement with Econolite at an annual rate of $80,592. Econolite has completed similar traffic signal maintenance in area cities, including Cerritos. Of the 110 signalized intersections in Downey, the city owns 98. The remaining 12 are partially owned by Downey but maintained by other agencies or cities.

********** Published: February 16, 2012 - Volume 10 - Issue 44