TD awarded electronic audible traffic signal contract

On behalf of the Transport Department (TD), the Government Supplies Department awarded the contract for supply and installation of the electronic audible traffic signal (e-ATS) at a sum of $32.8 million to Siemens Ltd on December 20 (Friday), after the trial of products by different manufacturers from Germany, Canada, Austria and Sweden since March 2000.

A TD spokesman said: "The e-ATS, equipped to adjust its output sound level automatically in response to the ambient noise level, will provide adequate sound to guide the visually impaired at the pedestrian crossings while minimizing the interference to the nearby residents."

He added that the installation would be divided into two phases: about 7000 units of existing electromechanical type audible traffic signal would be replaced by e-ATS by September 2003; another 3000 units of e-ATS would then be installed on existing pedestrian crossings without audible traffic signal (ATS) by April 2004.

Presently, 66 percent (or 954) of the 1445 signalised junctions with pedestrian crossings are installed with some 7000 units of ATS. They generate "tic-tac" sound at a fixed output level.

As the output level of ATS is fixed, the visually impaired may find the sound level inadequate when the ambient is noisy and the nearby residents may find the sound level too high when the environment is relatively quiet. The ambient noise responsive feature of the e-ATS, thus, addresses the concerns of both the visually impaired and local residents.

End/Wednesday, December 25, 2002