Bismarck Traffic Lights News Story

[DirtyMike]

Not sure how many of you Bismarck/Mandan residents caught the story on the traffic lights/flow around the two cities, but now is your time to make your complaints heard.

https://www.kfyrtv.com/content/news...hanging-in-Bismarck-and-Mandan-567247481.html

As a resident that has to travel from South to North every day, I feel like I have the lights timed pretty well and can figure out which sequence I'm on. Once you get south of Main st. I feel like the person in charge of the lights takes drinking on the job to a whole new level.

link for adding comments to specific intersections:
https://klj.mysocialpinpoint.com/bis-man-intersection

 

[LOV2HNT]

I curse daily at the traffic lights in Bismarck.

 

[Retired Educator]

Don't live in Bismarck but do go there fairly often. Sometimes it seems like I'm in perfect time with the lights and sometimes not. I you currently curse the lights, imagine the cursing that would be going on without any lights. It's one of the inconveniences we live with.

 

[Obi-Wan]

It been proven in the past the city engineers and commission don't care what the citizens say. They act like they want your input but in the end they implement their own wishes and wants. Now they are proposing to turn S. Washington from Riverwood dr / Denver to the Drainage ditch from 4 lanes to a 3 lane with a dedicated left turn lane.

 

[Lycanthrope]

It been proven in the past the city engineers and commission don't care what the citizens say. They act like they want your input but in the end they implement their own wishes and wants. Now they are proposing to turn S. Washington from Riverwood dr / Denver to the Drainage ditch from 4 lanes to a 3 lane with a dedicated left turn lane.

But we REALLY NEED more bike lanes, so that one commissioner can ride his bike around safely, cuz no one else uses the damn things....

 

[Pheasant 54]

I think those bike lanes are one of the reasons we no longer have Mr Seminary as mayor , what a joke they are . Kind of like the 25 mph zone on 19th st north of century , or how about the 2 left turn lanes coming out of Sams so you can set there every single time because there is no right hand turn lane and someone always wants to go straight

 

[Up Y'oars]

Lately, I've noticed that the lights sequence has been manually altered where they no longer work on those same time frames as they did before. Because of that I have to stop three stoplights in a row (LeSalle Ave., Walmart/Skyline Blvd, and 43rd Ave) only if I get lucky enough to receive another stoplight at Calgary/State Street. I've lived north of town for 10yrs and once you receive one of the green lights you receive them for all four. Now, you can't get through these without getting them all.

I sometimes believe folks are sitting in the Public Works building just pressing switches each day while sitting back and laughing at the massive loss of wasted gasoline/diesel they've created. I'm amazed that 8-10 vehicles will get stopped at a stoplight for ZERO cars at the crossing streets. SMH

 

[Uncle Jimbo]

Bismarck Expressway is the biggest misnomer in town.

Expressway, noun, a highway designed for fast traffic, with controlled entrance and exit, a dividing strip between the traffic in opposite directions, and typically two or more lanes in each direction

 

[Bfishn]

Yep the light timing has changed in the past year or so. I used to be able to time lights on several different routes that are now impossible and you hit every damn one!

 

[Lycanthrope]

Id bet not having the lights in sync is a tactic used to slow your crazy asses down! If you are near the end of a cycle with synced lights, in a 40mph zone, you can run 50+ through the whole set. More stops = slower traffic = Vision 0

 

[Bfishn]

Id bet not having the lights in sync is a tactic used to slow your crazy asses down! If you are near the end of a cycle with synced lights, in a 40mph zone, you can run 50+ through the whole set. More stops = slower traffic = Vision 0

Nope just the opposite now. You used to be able to do the exact speed limit and go all the way down 7th & 9th, if you went any faster you hit reds. Now you have to go 30+ and you still get stuck at Main pretty often. Same can be said for several stretches of expressway, you better be on the gas and speeding once your light turns green to make the next one, Never used to have to do that.

Basically they have shortened the duration of the green lights, resulting in having to drive faster to make them in sequence.

 

[ndlongshot]

Nothing pisses me off more than lights by oasis on expressway. Doesnt matter which way you travel. Its a game of green light/red light. Speed up, slam on breaks. I swear just to F with you.

I'm sick of wear and tear on my vehicle. And THEN, lets turn our streets into the worlds largest SALT MINE. For F's Sake. Tired of paying for everyone elses poor decisions. I love when its a blue bird day, no weather in the forecast, and the fricken city works is driving around spraying salty beet juice over everything. GTFO.

Dont worry, i'll pay all of my taxes for this dumb shit. Fix my car. Fix the roads. (or not) Lights that dont work. Blue lights for the traffic lights. Where does the stupidity end?

 

[Retired-Guy]

Bismarck Expressway is the biggest misnomer in town.

Expressway, noun, a highway designed for fast traffic, with controlled entrance and exit, a dividing strip between the traffic in opposite directions, and typically two or more lanes in each direction

I have been saying that every since I moved to Bismarck 30 some years ago!

 

[Cooz'sCatches]

on a lighter note, I enjoy the four way stops Downtown rather than having lights. Not that I spend much time in that area, but I feel it makes things flow smoother.

 

[Sluggo]

And why do some lights change to green the instant you pull up and others ignore you and stay red even though there is no cross traffic for what seems like an eternity?

 

[DirtyMike]

Nope just the opposite now. You used to be able to do the exact speed limit and go all the way down 7th & 9th, if you went any faster you hit reds. Now you have to go 30+ and you still get stuck at Main pretty often. Same can be said for several stretches of expressway, you better be on the gas and speeding once your light turns green to make the next one, Never used to have to do that.

Basically they have shortened the duration of the green lights, resulting in having to drive faster to make them in sequence.

exactly. 9th/expressway, you’ll have to stop at front if you drive the speed limit. If you speed, you can make at least the front street light, and maybe the main ave light. BUT, from main to state, you have to drive the speed limit. After that, it’s a flip of the coin. Sometimes I hit them correctly but not usually.

 

[JayKay]

I have lived in South Bismarck since 1980. I remember when Expressway stopped at Washington, and there was no Expressway bridge. Granted, that was before I drove anything other than a BMX bike.

I can count on one foot, the number of times I hit a green trying to turn from Expy south, onto Washington. The only way to do it is to floor it on 3rd, and hit that corner at 108 mph.

I mean, ahem. so I hear..

 

[Kurtr]

we only have 2 stop lights

 

[Mort]

The deal with traffic lights is your damn traffic signal engineers that don't do their homework and program them right to begin with for the appropriate traffic times and flow, does't matter what town it is. We have problems here too. I hope you guys haven't had one go down at the busiest intersection at the worst time. Our busiest intersection is 2nd Ave (Million dollar way) and 26th street, we've had the SOB go to red blinking red for every direction more than once and its was shit show as nobody had a clue who should go first and traffic got back up, it should be treated as a 4 way stop once that happens.

 

[sweeney]

Bismarck Expressway is the biggest misnomer in town.

Expressway, noun, a highway designed for fast traffic, with controlled entrance and exit, a dividing strip between the traffic in opposite directions, and typically two or more lanes in each direction

If people would drive 40mph (the speed limit) or a touch faster expressway flows good, also if people would merge into the turning lanes right away instead of slowing to 20 mph and in the last 40 feet of the lane move over, traffic would flow better as well.