New traffic camera could save Henderson money

By Jeremy Twitchell

Friday, April 17, 2009 | 12:41 p.m.

Henderson is testing a new generation of traffic camera that has the potential to create cost savings in the city’s traffic-monitoring program.

City crews installed the new Gridsmart Video System at the intersection of Lake Mead Parkway and Van Wagenen Street at the beginning of April. The system uses a single camera with a fisheye lens that can monitor all four directions of traffic.

“It basically does the same thing that all our other video detection systems do, but it does it with one camera instead of four or more,” Henderson Traffic Engineer John Penuelas said.

All information from the city’s traffic cameras goes to the Regional Transportation Commission’s Traffic Operations Center, where technicians use it to facilitate the flow of traffic by controlling traffic signals and information signs linked to the commission’s Freeway and Arterial System of Transportation (FAST).

Penuelas said the $10,000 Gridsmart system costs about the same as the four-camera systems that Henderson has installed at most major intersections. But if the city switches over to it after a two-month test period, the system could save the city thousands of dollars in the coming years through bulk purchases and decreased maintenance, he said.

“These things have been run in other places and have worked out well, but we wanted to make sure that they would work for our needs and that we could familiarize ourselves with them,” Penuelas said.

RTC spokeswoman Allison Blankenship said the commission doesn’t have any experience working with the Gridsmart system but is open to the idea of testing any new technology that could improve traffic management. “We’re always willing to work with all of our partners on any ideas they may have,” she said.

Penuelas said the Gridsmart system also has the ability to recognize incidents such as an accident or stalled car and alert the RTC. Presently, he said, an intersection must be wired with a separate system to perform that function.

The test camera does not have that detection ability, Penuelas said, but future cameras could have it installed.

Penuelas said the selection of the intersection at Lake Mead and Van Wagenen was nothing special — it was the next intersection in line for a traffic camera upgrade, and the city had the funds, through developer contributions, to purchase and test the equipment.

Henderson and the RTC also are testing another technology, a wireless traffic signal management system, on Pecos Road. The test began in January and results are expected this summer.