Pearl Road Getting Video Signal Technology

City Council has approved a series of change orders in the Pearl Road widening project, but officials said most were geared toward enhancements or speeding up the work.

The latest directs contractors to substitute fiber optics and video cameras on traffic signals for the standard under-the-road loop detectors.

"We wanted to move up to the more state-of-the-art (video) rather than the loops," Mayor Tom Periak said.

Cost will be $266,000, but the city received a $180,000 grant to offset the bulk of the price, Perciak said.

Typically, traffic signals monitor traffic and adjust their cycles through a loop detector  under the road that senses when metal -- a car or even a bicycle -- rests on it. 

A video system positions a small camera near the signal. While the camera is not sophisticated enough to record events at the intersection, it can detect the presence of a vehicle and trigger the light to change.

City Engineer Ken Mikula said there have been six change orders totaling $636,425 to the Pearl Road widening project, but most were items requested by the city rather than unforeseen contract conditions.

In addition to the video cameras, the city also decided to use quick-drying concrete in some areas to let traffic drive on it sooner -- including getting into the driveways of businesses along the stretch.

"We believe we're doing everything we can to aid those businesses  . .  . and keep them thriving," Perciak said.

The city also directed Fabrizi, the contractor handling the project, to close Drake Road in phases to perform full width work and give utilities time to relocate services.

Unanticipated change orders to the contract came from sanitary sewer repairs, finding abandoned underground storage tanks and repairing water mains. Those unexpected problems cost about $205,000, while the city-directed changes amounted to $431,000.

Council President Mike Daymut said the amount of change orders is reasonable.

"We were shooting for under 10 percent (of the contract) and we're well under that," Daymut said.

Perciak said recently he believes the project, which is widening Pearl Road to five lanes from where it narrows at the post office to a point just south of Drake Road, will be done before August, when it was scheduled to wrap up.