Rancho Santa Margarita's Traffic Situation Could Get More Predictable

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, CA — The Rancho Santa Margarita city council will decide whether to approve their part in a county-wide signal synchronization project this week, according to this week's City Council agenda.

About 2,500 traffic signal intersections in 34 different cities in Orange County will be synchronized if all cities approve the project organized by the Orange County Transportation Authority. If they approve the update, Rancho Santa Margarita and the other 33 cities in the county will all have coordinated traffic signals. Doing so will reduce traffic across the county.

In effect, there will be more green lights for drivers on the roadways, according to a spokesperson from OCTA.

"Traffic signal synchronization allows a series of lights to turn green in advance of arriving traffic based on synchronized timers set to current traffic conditions and congestion levels," they said. "Most signal timing projects result in a 5 to 15 percent improvement in travel time and speed, reducing travel times, stops, and delays."

If approved, the synchronized lights would continue until New Year's Eve, 2028. There is no cost to the city for agreeing to contribute to the county-wide project and no real reason to decline to participate, according to City Manager Jennifer Cervantes's report.

"OCTA will provide the city with updated timing plans for all control systems and all relevant data used to develop the plans," Cervantes wrote in her brief to the city council.

The mayor is expected to sign the agreement at Tuesday's council session, and plans will begin as soon as the OCTA General Counsel signs the agreement.