LTA plans to change traffic light timings at Bugis junction
Make a major Bugis road junction a crash site no more.
At least that is what the Land Transport Authority hopes to achieve by synchronising the green phase timing for the traffic lights at the pedestrian crossings linking Bugis Junction and Bugis Village, and the lights at the cross-road junction of Victoria Street and Rochor Road.
The latest move is an “added precautionary measure” after two consecutive motor accidents occurred at the site. The first accident on 12 May involved a speeding red Ferrari, while the second two weeks later involved a Lexus.
Both cars were travelling in the same direction in the wee hours on a Saturday when they both crashed into a taxi.
The first accident left three dead and two injured. The second had no fatalities.
Chin Kian Keong, group director for road operations and community partnership at the LTA, told Yahoo! Singapore that the agency’s engineers carefully evaluated the traffic signal configuration at the Rochor-Victoria junction, and “assessed that there were no issues with the existing traffic scheme at that location”.
He added, “The traffic lights at the crossroad-junction are distinct and can be clearly seen by the driver, whichever lane they are driving on.” Nonetheless, LTA is going ahead with the changes in traffic lights.
In a statement, the LTA cautioned, however, against drink driving.
"We cannot over-emphasize the importance for motorists to abide by the mandatory traffic signals and keep to the speed limits, and not to drive if they drink,” it said.
