Skip to main content

Canadian police department implements traffic signal priority

The District of Saanich’s Police Department in British Columbia, Canada, has awarded Global Traffic Technologies (GTT) a contract for the implementation of its latest-generation GPS-enabled Opticom pre-emption solution, which works alongside intersection controllers to help ensure emergency vehicles can move through intersections rapidly and safely. Saanich Fire Department is already a user of the Opticom system. The system includes a GPS component for location, direction, speed and ETA, as well as wirel
November 15, 2016 Read time: 1 min
The District of Saanich’s Police Department in British Columbia, Canada, has awarded 542 Global Traffic Technologies (GTT) a contract for the implementation of its latest-generation GPS-enabled Opticom pre-emption solution, which works alongside intersection controllers to help ensure emergency vehicles can move through intersections rapidly and safely. Saanich Fire Department is already a user of the Opticom system.

The system includes a GPS component for location, direction, speed and ETA, as well as wireless radio communications between authorised emergency vehicles and the intersections they approach. When an emergency vehicle needs to navigate an intersection quickly and safely, a request is sent to the intersection’s controller ahead of its arrival, turning the light green and clearing a path to enable the vehicle’s safe passage.

Related Content

  • July 13, 2023
    Yunex and Lyt give green light to emergency response in Seattle
    NextGen preemption solution will help to create green waves for vehicles going to incidents
  • March 15, 2012
    Traffic signals turn red to stop speeding drivers
    David Crawford is encouraged by the spread of 'soft' speed policing 
  • April 19, 2012
    National City deploys new signal preemtion technology
    National City, in San Diego county, California, has installed Opticom multimode signal equipment to enhance safety and provide more efficient traffic signal preemption and management. Currently, more than 70 intersections are equipped with infrared (IR) signal priority technology, most of which are Opticom devices. This allows emergency responders to activate green lights en route to their destination. With the new multimode technology installed at eight intersections, traffic signals can be triggered using
  • November 1, 2016
    Connected offers free I2V connectivity
    A new system could reduce the cost of implementing I2V communications across a city to less than that for a single intersection, as Colin Sowman hears. It may seem too good to be true but US company Connected Signals is offering city authorities the equipment to provide infrastructure to vehicle (I2V) communications for free. The system enables drivers to receive information about the timing of signals they are approaching via the EnLighten smartphone app (or connected in-vehicle display).