ORLANDO, Fla. — In this week's Traffic Inbox, one viewer claims that a traffic pattern near downtown Orlando doesn't make sense.

  • Traffic signal causes delays for southbound Orange Avenue
  • Signal affected by trains that run through the area
  • City of Orlando says it's working on 2 possible solutions

Cody Frear says the traffic signal on Orange Avenue at Princeton Street will go through several cycles without giving the southbound side a green light.

We visited the intersection and spoke with city of Orlando officials to see whether it's true.

"Yes, there is validity about the delay at the intersection," said Chris Cairns, city transportation engineer. 

The delay is caused by the trains, which run close to the intersection.

"The railroad tracks are less than 300 feet from the Orange Avenue-Princeton intersection," Cairns said. "And with that, when the train is coming, we need to make sure that the people on westbound Princeton get off the tracks."

When a train runs close to the intersection, it trips a sensor that sends the traffic signals in the area into an already formulated pattern designed to prevent too many cars from backing up in front of the railroad tracks.

After the train clears, the pattern reboots, and unfortunately, southbound traffic on Orange Avenue has the last priority at that signal. So it's possible for drivers to be sitting in the southbound traffic for up to three or four cycles when this happens.

City officials say they are working on two solutions: One, they recently asked SunRail, through the Florida Department of Transportation, whether it's possible to minimize the second traffic sensor south of the station. The second would be a longer term solution.

"Maybe there is a way for the traffic signal to better adapt and recover more quickly. In other words, have less of a delay for the overall intersection," Cairns said.  

That could still be some time away.

Thanks for your question, Cody. And if you have a traffic issue or problem that you want looked at or solved, head to mynews13.com/trafficinbox and just fill out the simple form.