Signal construction on Pat Booker Rd

If you're one who lives, works or plays around Universal City or the city of Converse, you'll want to know about this.

Our signal crews will be upgrading some signals along Pat Booker Road, particularly right there at FM 78, on September 20.

That's a Tuesday. Work should just take a single day, weather permitting. That said, the one day we'll be out there will involve considerable interruptions to traffic flow. In particular:

• Signals will be disabled at FM 78 and Pat Booker for the day; traffic will be directed by off-duty police officers
• Intermittent stops to traffic will occur while crews work on overhead signal heads; these stops should only be a few minutes at a time, but they will happen
• Crossing the Union Pacific Railroad line at this location will be facilitated by flaggers

So what are we doing, exactly? It's a full-on upgrade. We're replacing the signal control box, replacing two signal mast arms and upgrading the flashing yellow arrows and detection systems.

Oh, and this is also happening at the intersection of Pat Booker Road and Aviation.

We'll do our best to avoid peak hours, but expect crews to be on site by 9 a.m. and continue their work until we're finished.

Signalizing Pat Booker Road

Yesterday, if you were on Pat Booker Road around Live Oak or Universal City, you may have encountered one of our crews working on traffic signals at the intersections of Live Oak Crossing and at Village Oak.

You'll see them out today, also - at the intersections of Athenian and at Buckingham Village.

If weather holds, in fact, you'll see our guys out there upgrading the traffic signals along Pat Booker Road through this week and again later in the month. This is all part of an effort to bring the new signals up to snuff with the new standard of protected and permitted movements on urban roads.

What does that mean? Well, put quite simply, the traffic signal industry (meaning the large mass of guys and gals who figure out how to tell drivers when they can and cannot go) has found a better standard of best practices with their turn signals.

While we're at it, we'll also install new Video Infrared Vehicle Detection System sensors (not actual cameras, but sensors detecting the flow and levels of traffic in a given direction) at each intersection and we'll upgrade the street name signs so they're easier to read.

The old signals, which featured a set of five lights on each signal, are being replaced with four-head signal units. The new signals will feature a "left turn yield on flashing yellow arrow" sign. This means if you're fixing to turn left at an intersection and you've got a blinking yellow light, you're welcome to do so - provided the intersection is clear. (That's a key proviso....)

The old system had signs that read "left turn yield on..." followed by a big green dot. The idea was those who wished to turn left could do so with that solid green light, as long as the intersection is clear. The new system focuses more on safety and removes confusion for those thinking they have the right-of-way for their left turn when that solid green light is lit.

The new system is also consistent with the system of flashing yellow arrows installed by the city of San Antonio in 2014.

While we're at each intersection, the signals will be turned off and traffic will be controlled by off-duty police officers. We expect our guys to finish each intersection in about four hours, and should really only be out there in traffic between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. each day.

If you're super curious, here's the projected schedule (keep in mind weather or other issues may cause this to change):

July 5 - Live Oak Crossing and Village Oak

July 6 – Athenian and Buckingham Village

July 7 – Coronado and Universal City Blvd

July 8 – Rose Garden and Kitty Hawk

July 18 – Northview/Stone Gate, Villa and Randolph Plaza

July 19 – Byrd and National

July 20 – FM 78

July 21 – Aviation*

July 26 – Loop 1604

Note on July 21, while signal crews are at work at the intersection of Aviation, we'll have maintenance crews working to improve the asphalt condition on Pat Booker at the railroad tracks - the goal there is to make your drive a smoother one.

The next big thing: Loop 1604 at I-35 (northeast SA)

Drivers on the northeast side might soon take note of message boards warning of the closure of the ramp from Loop 1604 to northbound I-35.

That's the ramp that handles all traffic from Loop 1604 onto northbound I-35. The ramp getting folks onto southbound I-35 will not be impacted.

The ramp needs to close for about a month while our construction contractor works on what's called a straddle bent, or a support structure, that will hold up the bridged northbound ramp from I-35 to Forum Parkway. Traffic will use the Pat Booker Road exit, and reach northbound I-35 by utilizing the frontage roads and going through the Forum Parkway intersection.

With the Loop 1604 ramps to northbound I-35 closed, traffic will be diverted through Pat Booker Road and will use frontage roads to reach their destinations.

And yes, we know. This will probably get ugly.

For those who live, work and play in this area routinely, you'll find some respite by using some alternate routes. I recommend using FM 2252 - also called Nacogdoches Road inside Loop 1604 - which connects Loop 1604 and FM 3009. FM 78, which runs through Universal City, is another viable route.

You might have a few ideas of your own. I encourage you to explore them now so you're ready to roll when we start this work.

One last point, just for emphasis: I do not yet have an exact starting date for this traffic change. However, it is coming soon, and will likely last about a month (give or take a week).

And that's the plan for now.