San Antonio traffic

[HoneyBee]

Well the school kids are off on vacation for the next 2 weeks so expect things to be "bad" during this period. 

One thing that would help is if the Police Vial (or is it transito) manually controlled the traffic flow during holidays and weekends. As it stands, they blow their whistle when the light turns green ! (always get to have a good nap at the Chapala traffic lights).

[ea93105]

True, I've never worked on traffic lights but because I can see that different lights have different intervals, it seems extremely plausible to me that  they have internal clocks which can be adjusted.  Making non adjustable traffic lights is beyond my belief. I do believe it would take a technician no more than an hour to adjust the internal timers.

The return would be high in my opinion and as we all know,  it's only going to get worse. ( new hospital, new apartment buildings etc etc. )

Sure we can wait until someone else decides something has to done about it, but just maybe it can be accomplish sooner than later

 

[ea93105]

4 minutes ago, HoneyBee said:

Well the school kids are off on vacation for the next 2 weeks so expect things to be "bad" during this period. 

One thing that would help is if the Police Vial (or is it transito) manually controlled the traffic flow during holidays and weekends. As it stands, they blow their whistle when the light turns green ! (always get to have a good nap at the Chapala traffic lights).

I've seen the Chapala traffic vial move traffic through red lights in order to relieve pressure, very helpful. Don't see that working in SA due to lack of safe space for the them.

[pappysmarket]

Try asking a Mexican friend, who would also be a potential voter, if he/she would be willing to stop in the Presidente's office in Chapala and inquire for you who in fact has the authority to lay a hand on those lights. It might be "enlightening" for you and him/her. If more people just drove like Mexicans, ie. stop at the red light, look, and proceed with caution much of the problem could be solved. If they could be persuaded to remove the lights completely that would be the best solution. Cars from the intersecting roads would ease, slip or barge into the traffic flow and no Mexican driver would be the least offended by that tactic. Watch how they treat every other intersection. Some exceedingly polite, some exceedingly pushy but the majority of drivers "just fit in".

[Xena]

1 hour ago, ea93105 said:

True, I've never worked on traffic lights but because I can see that different lights have different intervals, it seems extremely plausible to me that  they have internal clocks which can be adjusted.  Making non adjustable traffic lights is beyond my belief. I do believe it would take a technician no more than an hour to adjust the internal timers.

The return would be high in my opinion and as we all know,  it's only going to get worse. ( new hospital, new apartment buildings etc etc. )

Sure we can wait until someone else decides something has to done about it, but just maybe it can be accomplish sooner than later

 

You have been offered by pappysmarket a viable start for your campaign. Unless you have what you think is a better start I suggest you begin there. 

[gringal]

1 hour ago, ea93105 said:

You should look in the mirror, 'Sense of superiority"

Those people with active lives would benefit from better traffic flow

I am not a guest, I am a legal resident who supports the local economy and just wants to improve things . I know there are many things in Mexico which I cannot change such as the law that requires no vehicle be moved after an accident ( causing massive traffic jams for hours on end )

But  local  traffic lights ? Seems reasonable that those are controlled locally and maybe someone on this forum might have some insight on who to talk to. Don't think someone in GDL is controlling the lights in San Antonio.

The "voting" argument is silly in this case

 

Re "sense of superiority" comment above.

" Not everyone living here is a retired expat who's entire day is just going to Superlake and back "

I rest my case.

[pappysmarket]

Back when we had our BnB, 10-15 years ago, we had many guests who decided to make the move to lakeside. My wife and I enjoyed guessing which ones would stick and which ones didn't have the temperment for permanent stays in Mexico. Not always right we were, but much better than 50-50. I'm voting no.

[Mainecoons]

As to the traffic lights it appears their internal clocks run at different speeds as the phasing changes steadily with time.  Sometimes they are synchronized but then in a day or so they are 180 degrees out.  Those lights are so bad they are backing traffic back up onto the libremiento hill.  It really is just a matter of time before one of these truck juggernauts piles right into the back of one of these and kills some folks.

Oaxaca is taking out traffic lights and converting to "uno y uno" stop signs with very good results.  There was an article about it in Mexico News Daily.  I believe this work work very well for both of these intersections.

The right people to go to the state and get them to fix this situation would be our own public works department.  I think I'd round me up a technically savvy Mexican and go in there.  But you may as well wait until the election.

[ea93105]

1 hour ago, Mainecoons said:

As to the traffic lights it appears their internal clocks run at different speeds as the phasing changes steadily with time.  Sometimes they are synchronized but then in a day or so they are 180 degrees out.  Those lights are so bad they are backing traffic back up onto the libremiento hill.  It really is just a matter of time before one of these truck juggernauts piles right into the back of one of these and kills some folks.

Oaxaca is taking out traffic lights and converting to "uno y uno" stop signs with very good results.  There was an article about it in Mexico News Daily.  I believe this work work very well for both of these intersections.

The right people to go to the state and get them to fix this situation would be our own public works department.  I think I'd round me up a technically savvy Mexican and go in there.  But you may as well wait until the election.

I agree, for the most part everyone here is very good at allowing people to merge into traffic and when I do so I usually get a friendly thank you wave.

By having two lights out of sync within a couple hundred yards from another, they will on average stop traffic more frequently  than their individual interval, so just synchronizing the lights alone will make a big difference, no to mention extending the interval.

I also agree that it's more than an inconvenience, I've seen motos and cars do dangerous maneuvers to get around the jam. Motos on the bike path and cars driving fast on the cobblestone side road and none of them even look for bicyclist when merging back.

Thanks for the tip about the public works department, I will enlist an esteemed Mexican resident to try to get a change made.

 

 

[pappysmarket]

A set of 3 high topes before each light would probably be sufficient to slow vehicles enough for the cross street traffic to get in. I know, I don't like topes either but it should be a lot better than the lights. Of course, some vehicles will swerve around the topes and not slow down. The most common offenders here in PV are buses and motos. I yield to the buses but pay no attention to a moto avoiding the topes. Probably not going to severely damage my car and his/her tough luck if they hit me.

[barcelonaman]

For the amount of traffic entering and leaving the two streets the lights serve,really doesnt justify traffic lights.

[More Liana]

6 hours ago, ea93105 said:

Another stupid response

Next time a moto takes out a pedestrian on the bike path because traffic is at a complete stand still you can all sit back and laugh and say "this is Mexico"..live with it

Mexico is a developing country, why not  help rather than spout stupidities ?

A long time ago, right before I moved away from Ajijic (ea93105 take note: moved way from), the lake was at extremely low ebb, far shallower than it is now.  The expats and Mexicans at Lakeside were afraid that the lake would dry up and so would their investments in Ajijic.

In Spanish, someone asked (as you did in English, about the traffic), "What can we do about the situation with the Lake?  Who can we ask for help?"  The answer from Mexicans was this:  "If you want improvements in the lake water situation, there are two ways to go about asking: from the government or by praying to Our Lady of Zapopan.  Getting a solution from the government would be the miraculous way."

So no, I wasn't laughing at you, ea93105.  I was giving you that same answer, just a different apparition of the Virgen.

I left Ajijic 13 years ago--I live in Mexico City now, as most all of you know.  Want to talk about traffic, ea93105?  Just let me know, over here in CDMX we are experts in the subject. 

 

[pappysmarket]

....And someone else can continue ML's recounting and what happened after that.

Hint:  It wasn't a government miracle. Nor "Save the Lake" miracle.

[Tiny]

Queston: I was just wondering, since I am not Lakeside, do the citizens have regular input to the local government?

[Yo1]

The light at Allen Blvd can't be removed because of the school up the hill beyond El Parque.  The light at SuperLake is really needed for people to get out of the parking lot and onto the carretera.  Uno y uno might work.

[Sonia]

Listen to Mainecoons. There is not one traffic light in all of San Miguel and it works very well. 

[ned small]

17 hours ago, Tiny said:

Queston: I was just wondering, since I am not Lakeside, do the citizens have regular input to the local government?

They even listen to non-hysterical and, those that don't tell them what to do, foreigners about mostly IMPORTANT issues. The 2 PRI governments run by brothers here have done quite a lot for their poorer constituents. The first brother had a hard row to hoe getting funds for major things from opposition fed and state governments And how many times do the members on here have to be told that traffic lights are under state control? By the way,the area in front of Superlake ,although used for parking, is not a parking lot. it's a lateral one way heading east and does not belong to the store. As bad as it is now,which is nothing more than a minor annoyance remember what it was like before the planter barrier and all the yahoos just coming out from there along the full length of that lateral.  now if they behave themselves and drive east[some don't behave and go the wrong way] the only way to get out reasonably is with that light  that you are all complaining about.

[pappysmarket]

11 minutes ago, ned small said:

They even listen to non-hysterical and, those that don't tell them what to do, foreigners about mostly IMPORTANT issues. The 2 PRI governments run by brothers here have done quite a lot for their poorer constituents. The first brother had a hard row to hoe getting funds for major things from opposition fed and state governments And how many times do the members on here have to be told that traffic lights are under state control? By the way,the area in front of Superlake ,although used for parking, is not a parking lot. it's a lateral one way heading east and does not belong to the store. As bad as it is now,which is nothing more than a minor annoyance remember what it was like before the planter barrier and all the yahoos just coming out from there along the full length of that lateral.  now if they behave themselves and drive east[some don't behave and go the wrong way] the only way to get out reasonably is with that light  that you are all complaining about.

Well said Ned.

[Mainecoons]

Somehow Ned I doubt you ever get beyond the Iron Horse in this direction.  You don't have a clue about how bad and dangerous the backups in that area have become or you would understand this is far from a minor annoyance now.   And Pappys, respectfully you don't live even near here so how would you know?

And clearly Ned you don't understand how uno y uno works or you would understand it does allow people in all directions to proceed one at a time.  What it prevents is people getting so backed up from one light they can't get through the second.  And, yes, it is the state's responsibility and a local government that was doing its job would be working with the state to fix this problem instead of ignoring it.

As for your endorsement of a government that took over two years to begin solving the trash mess, that increased the city hall payroll by 50 percent, that was roundly censured by a large group of parents whose children were molested for trying to cover things up, that has been censured repeatedly by the state government for hiding public information, that a recall attempt with thousands of signatures was filed against it by local Mexicans, that spent millions on the Bridge to Jesus and left the Chapala waterfront with a class A eyesore, that has repeatedly violated court orders to stop that high rise in La Floresta, that had its bank accounts impounded by the courts and so on into infinity.

As for "PRI governments" just read the news folks. 

 

 

[pappysmarket]

Well I certainly remember it before the planter barrier and as Ned said, it's not supposed to be a parking lot and if that was enforced there would be fewer cars trying to exit Superlake and wanting to turn left. As far as uno y uno is concerned, I do live in PV where that is very prevalent. I can tell you that if you rely on the other guy stopping and letting you pass you will have an accident your first day here. It is not obeyed in any way, shape or form. First vehicle there goes but never stops. The most "main" street always goes first and the other side waits. The only cars that ever stop are on the side streets waiting to pass or on the main street because someone has managed to block the intersection and make them wait. Topes do force everyone on all sides to slow way down and enable the side roads to have a fighting chance at getting in. Your dislike of topes is well documented and I agree with you on that. Unless you can change the mindset of lots of Mexican drivers, uno y uno will never work. Vehicles on the carretera will not even slow down never mind stop. Remember, we are dealing with drivers who , when asked why they don't use turn signals, reply that it's nobody's business what they intend to do next.  I'll get to experience first hand in June.

[ned small]

38 minutes ago, Mainecoons said:

Somehow Ned I doubt you ever get beyond the Iron Horse in this direction.  You don't have a clue about how bad and dangerous the backups in that area have become or you would understand this is far from a minor annoyance now.   And Pappys, respectfully you don't live even near here so how would you know?

And clearly Ned you don't understand how uno y uno works or you would understand it does allow people in all directions to proceed one at a time.  What it prevents is people getting so backed up from one light they can't get through the second.  And, yes, it is the state's responsibility and a local government that was doing its job would be working with the state to fix this problem instead of ignoring it.

As for your endorsement of a government that took over two years to begin solving the trash mess, that increased the city hall payroll by 50 percent, that was roundly censured by a large group of parents whose children were molested for trying to cover things up, that has been censured repeatedly by the state government for hiding public information, that a recall attempt with thousands of signatures was filed against it by local Mexicans, that spent millions on the Bridge to Jesus and left the Chapala waterfront with a class A eyesore, that has repeatedly violated court orders to stop that high rise in La Floresta, that had its bank accounts impounded by the courts and so on into infinity.

As for "PRI governments" just read the news folks. 

 

 

I have been here as long as you and my friend who you keep trying to mix up as me has been here 12 years and unlike you he has worked with governments of both parties and has first hand knowledge and I have had the pleasure of meeting some of the people you continue to trash simply because you've read some politically motivated bs and your fanciful negativity. every slightest thing on this board is your segue into your out to lunch diatribes. i told you already that I have only been to that bar once and my friend hasn't been there in over a year. you remind me of an ex-wife  who when an argument started about a specific thing would bring up all 10 years of confrontations instead of sticking to the topic at hand which in this case is traffic lights and slowing of traffic at Superlake. You are the one who has proven over and over again that you know very little of what you speak.

[ComputerGuy]

It's a hoot to think that a government that can't even replace burned out LED lights would even consider doing traffic timing, state, federal or otherwise. I share pappy's and a few other's opinion that the fewer lights the better. Drivers immediately, if not sooner, become more tolerant and respectful of other drivers and pedestrians when they are allowed to make up their own minds.

It is also not beyond reason to suggest that the owners of SuperLake pitch in with money and ideas; after all, it is their shop that causes most of the problem. Same goes for Walmart: they never did follow through on their "guarantee" to fix the situation in front of their store (let alone actually plant the hundreds of trees they were supposed to plant).

SuperLake and whoever else did pitch in to install that huge tope/hump/water barrier in the centre of the parking lot should be admonished and punished until they lower the hump. It adds twice the amount of time for many cars to slow-crawl over it to avoid bottom damage. At least make it an exit only.

[ComputerGuy]

Just now, pappysmarket said:

Remember, we are dealing with drivers who , when asked why they don't use turn signals, reply that it's nobody's business what they intend to do next.  I'll get to experience first hand in June.

Is that why they are like that. I thought it was federal law that you couldn't have more than one working headlight; that the headlight must be on high at all times; and that you are not allowed to use turn signals.

[AngusMactavish]

If you see a Mexican car with its turn signals on, it was most likely bought that way.

[pappysmarket]

12 minutes ago, ComputerGuy said:

Is that why they are like that. I thought it was federal law that you couldn't have more than one working headlight; that the headlight must be on high at all times; and that you are not allowed to use turn signals.

Haha, both explanations certainly do apply along with innumerable others.    As well as Angus', the car must have been purchased with a turn signal on.