The signal of Franklin St and Estes Dr runs a 2-2.5 minute cycle during the day. During this cycle, all movements are served. During morning peak hours, a minute is given to Estes and a minute is given to Franklin St, due to the distribution of traffic. From mid-morning to afternoon, a majority of time (up to 1.5 minutes) is given to Estes Drive, including the left-turns. This is due to Estes Dr being a primary East-West corridor of Chapel Hill, and the relatively small amount of vehicle storage on Estes from the west. More green time is needed on Estes as it has only one through lane per direction. Another criteria is keeping the access for the Chapel Hill Library clear. During the afternoon peak-hour, time has to be split between the large amount of traffic along Estes and Franklin St towards downtown. A minute is given to Estes Dr and a 1.5 minutes to Franklin St.

At night, the light remains green on Franklin St unless a vehicle approaches on Estes Dr.

The Town has reviewed the intersection during the days and has observed traffic moving as intended. Proper signal timing requires a delicate balance between both streets based upon volumes of traffic. Vehicles are being serviced with acceptable levels of green time, and total delay combining Franklin and Estes cannot be minimized unless additional geometric modifications are proposed.

SeeClickFix is now live in Chapel Hill and all concerns related to traffic, streets, and utilities can be submitted directly to the Town. You may post all future issues to SeeClickFix and the Town shall communicate with you in a timely manner.

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