Highway 4 ramp lights project continues

The Highway 4 onramp at Alhambra Avenue, Martinez, while construction was underway in September. The barriers have since been removed from the roadway, and the asphalt repaved and striped. (DONNA BETH WEILENMAN / Martinez)
The Highway 4 onramp at Alhambra Avenue, Martinez, while construction was underway in September. The barriers have since been removed from the roadway, and the asphalt repaved and striped. (DONNA BETH WEILENMAN / Martinez)
By DONNA BETH WEILENMAN
Martinez Tribune

The second phase of a Metropolitan Transportation Commission project to install metered ramp lights on California State Route 4 has begun, Martinez Police Lt. Aaron Roth said Thursday, Dec. 17.

“The first phase was completed in 2013,” he said. That portion of the project involved installing new ramp metering lights along both CA-4 and California State Route 242 east of Martinez, he said.

From there, the Commission began installing ramp meters farther west along CA-4, including entrances and exits in Martinez.

Roth called this an “ambitious project” and said it’s designed to improve the capacity of the existing local highways “by targeting congestion during commute hours.

“Ramp meters improve safety, make travel time more predictable and increase the volume and speed of freeway traffic,” Roth said.

The Commission is using state-of-the-art meters that adapt to traffic conditions, he said. “These meters will automatically adjust the green rate on the meters based on traffic flows both at on-ramps and on the highways themselves,” he said.

Drivers may have noticed the meters’ installation on ramps at CA-4 and Morello Avenue, Center Avenue and Alhambra Avenue, although the lights haven’t been activated. That will change once the project is finished, Roth said.

“Motorists will be alerted that the meters are on with a flashing sign at the base of the ramp,” he said.

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