Engineers baffled by London Road traffic lights failure

10:17am Wednesday 24th October 2012 in News By Simon Farr

London Road traffic lights still out London Road traffic lights still out

ENGINEERS have been left scratching their heads by a computer glitch causing the failure of the Wycombe Marsh Retail Park traffic lights.

The London Road signals have been malfunctioning for ten days now and workman are still baffled as to how to correct the problem.

Transport for Buckinghamshire said the lights are controlled by two computers – the main one which runs the day-to-day operations and a second safety system that cuts in should the first computer fail.

The safety system has been overriding the main programme, predominantly during the early hours, and shutting off the lights.

TfB’s Rosemary Bryant said engineers with 100 years of experience between them have performed root and branch repairs to the signals.

But it has so far proved unsuccessful and the experts are running out of ideas.

She said: “The lights have been there seven years and we’ve never had a major problem like this with them and now it’s every day.

“The workmen, who must have 100 years of experience between them, have been out there every night for ten nights and they still don’t know why it’s cutting out.

“They have replaced everything - wiring, the lot – but every time they go away thinking they’ve cracked it, the safety system cuts back in again.

“They are rebooting the computer system from scratch today. If that doesn’t work, I’m not sure what the next step will be.”

TfB said London Road and its junctions with the retail park, Micklefield Road and Cock Lane were being closely monitored on traffic cameras – but added the problem was not causing congestion.

Comments (16)

12:44pm Wed 24 Oct 12

pastyboy says...

The traffic flows better when they're not working!!
The traffic flows better when they're not working!! pastyboy

12:44pm Wed 24 Oct 12

yog says...

Traffic seems to be running a lot better without them.
Traffic seems to be running a lot better without them. yog

12:57pm Wed 24 Oct 12

The Nomad says...

Given that it has occured for the 10 days, maybe human intervention has played a part

And yes traffic flows much better with them not working as the other traffic lights along the London Road (in both directions) allow for gaps in the traffic flow to pull out/in the retail park and Micklefield Road

Makes no difference for **** Lane as the cars just pull out anyway regardless of the traffic light colour
Given that it has occured for the 10 days, maybe human intervention has played a part And yes traffic flows much better with them not working as the other traffic lights along the London Road (in both directions) allow for gaps in the traffic flow to pull out/in the retail park and Micklefield Road Makes no difference for **** Lane as the cars just pull out anyway regardless of the traffic light colour The Nomad

1:20pm Wed 24 Oct 12

Stalemate says...

Are you sure that guy on the ladder is an engineer and not a peeping tom, as there are a couple of tarts working in those apartments :-0
Are you sure that guy on the ladder is an engineer and not a peeping tom, as there are a couple of tarts working in those apartments :-0 Stalemate

1:41pm Wed 24 Oct 12

regis says...

why not just disconnect the safety system?!
why not just disconnect the safety system?! regis

2:49pm Wed 24 Oct 12

SJ_CFC says...

If the computers are playing up, why do we have engineers working on the traffic lights? Should they not be working on fixing the computers?

And may be it is a "divine signal" that we don't need traffic lights at that junction. Bring back the round-about !!!
If the computers are playing up, why do we have engineers working on the traffic lights? Should they not be working on fixing the computers? And may be it is a "divine signal" that we don't need traffic lights at that junction. Bring back the round-about !!! SJ_CFC

4:07pm Wed 24 Oct 12

Mr Totterdge Hill says...

SJ_CFC wrote:
If the computers are playing up, why do we have engineers working on the traffic lights? Should they not be working on fixing the computers?

And may be it is a "divine signal" that we don't need traffic lights at that junction. Bring back the round-about !!!
If only!
[quote][p][bold]SJ_CFC[/bold] wrote: If the computers are playing up, why do we have engineers working on the traffic lights? Should they not be working on fixing the computers? And may be it is a "divine signal" that we don't need traffic lights at that junction. Bring back the round-about !!![/p][/quote]If only! Mr Totterdge Hill

4:58pm Wed 24 Oct 12

readerabc says...

went that way today- traffic flowing beautifully - people actually slow down and check rather than assuming they have right of way

only hold up was at next set of working lights!!

save money - get rid of them and install a roundabout....
went that way today- traffic flowing beautifully - people actually slow down and check rather than assuming they have right of way only hold up was at next set of working lights!! save money - get rid of them and install a roundabout.... readerabc

5:20pm Wed 24 Oct 12

miccles says...

“The workmen, who must have 100 years of experience between them, have been out there every night for ten nights and they still don’t know why it’s cutting out."

So are we supposed to feel sorry for these workmen "who have 100 years of experience between them"??

I thought that this was their job, and what we pay them for.
My boss doesn't praise me everytime i do a job,
“The workmen, who must have 100 years of experience between them, have been out there every night for ten nights and they still don’t know why it’s cutting out." So are we supposed to feel sorry for these workmen "who have 100 years of experience between them"?? I thought that this was their job, and what we pay them for. My boss doesn't praise me everytime i do a job, miccles

8:10pm Wed 24 Oct 12

shaky2 says...

Will they get the message that all these lights are an absolute pain if the traffic flow is better now without them just as the case used to be before these dam lights where installed, no this is a to simple solution. The London Road is a complete mess of lights that are not needed and don't even start me on the bus lane
Will they get the message that all these lights are an absolute pain if the traffic flow is better now without them just as the case used to be before these dam lights where installed, no this is a to simple solution. The London Road is a complete mess of lights that are not needed and don't even start me on the bus lane shaky2

8:14pm Wed 24 Oct 12

shaky2 says...

SJ_CFC wrote:
If the computers are playing up, why do we have engineers working on the traffic lights? Should they not be working on fixing the computers?

And may be it is a "divine signal" that we don't need traffic lights at that junction. Bring back the round-about !!!
well said let's start a bring back the roundabout campaign I try not to use the Retail park as it takes so long to get out of the place because of these lights
[quote][p][bold]SJ_CFC[/bold] wrote: If the computers are playing up, why do we have engineers working on the traffic lights? Should they not be working on fixing the computers? And may be it is a "divine signal" that we don't need traffic lights at that junction. Bring back the round-about !!![/p][/quote]well said let's start a bring back the roundabout campaign I try not to use the Retail park as it takes so long to get out of the place because of these lights shaky2

8:25pm Wed 24 Oct 12

shaky2 says...

100 years of experience between them so if there are 100 men working on this job that means they each have 1 year experience no wonder they can't fix it
100 years of experience between them so if there are 100 men working on this job that means they each have 1 year experience no wonder they can't fix it shaky2

8:31pm Wed 24 Oct 12

BOOKERite says...

Bring back the roundabouts along the whole stretch of the London Road. That will save the taxpayer's cash on useless engineers.
Bring back the roundabouts along the whole stretch of the London Road. That will save the taxpayer's cash on useless engineers. BOOKERite

9:08pm Wed 24 Oct 12

YorksDavey says...

Sadly now they've changed the junction, it's not big enough for a roundabout of suitable size for the number of lanes that exist. A non starter that idea, as nice as it would be!
Sadly now they've changed the junction, it's not big enough for a roundabout of suitable size for the number of lanes that exist. A non starter that idea, as nice as it would be! YorksDavey

9:21am Thu 25 Oct 12

loudwaterlad says...

I'm glad to see that after I report the lights as being out (three times now) the police send a few police/traffic wardens (NOT) to direct the traffic.
I'm glad to see that after I report the lights as being out (three times now) the police send a few police/traffic wardens (NOT) to direct the traffic. loudwaterlad

11:36am Thu 25 Oct 12

Garrob says...

I go through there around 6am and the lights are out (so presumably out all night) but in the evening rush hour they are up and running. Surely the two times of day run different patterns. Whenever I used to go through late at night (to turn into Micklefield Rd) the lights would be triggered by running over the sensors but during the day and in rush hour they would be timed. I just wonder if the road sensors are screwing up the control system.
I go through there around 6am and the lights are out (so presumably out all night) but in the evening rush hour they are up and running. Surely the two times of day run different patterns. Whenever I used to go through late at night (to turn into Micklefield Rd) the lights would be triggered by running over the sensors but during the day and in rush hour they would be timed. I just wonder if the road sensors are screwing up the control system. Garrob

Comments are closed on this article.

click2find

About cookies

We want you to enjoy your visit to our website. That's why we use cookies to enhance your experience. By staying on our website you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more about the cookies we use.

I agree