Left-turn arrow at Danada Drive is erratic

Q. There is a problem with the timing of the left-turn arrow on northbound Naperville Road to westbound Danada Drive in Wheaton.

The green arrow comes on, and immediately goes to yellow. This barely leaves enough time for two cars to make the turn, and there are often seven or eight cars waiting to make the turn.

-- L. M., Wheaton

A. I observed the signal from 2 to 2:20 p.m. on a Tuesday, and the signal appeared to be working erratically. Right at 2 p.m., the left-turn green arrow from northbound Naperville Road to westbound Danada Drive went immediately to yellow after turning green just as you described.

However, over the next 20 minutes, the left-turn arrow stayed green anywhere from 10 to 20 seconds. At 2:20, the arrow turned instantly from green to yellow again.

Also, eastbound Danada Drive had a green light between 30 seconds and a minute long. This was more time than was needed to allow traffic to exit the subdivision.

David Ziesemer, traffic engineer with the Division of Transportation at DuPage County, agrees there's a problem.

"The minimum length of a left-turn green arrow should be six seconds," Ziesemer said. "I'm guessing there's something wrong with the equipment in the signal control box nearby."

The county recently had a traffic signal repaired at Blanchard Street/Blanchard Circle, just south of Danada Drive on Naperville Road, when a reader notified this column of a problem there in August.

Ziesemer said he'll now inspect and repair the Danada Drive intersection as well.

Certified electricians regularly inspect the county's 300 traffic signals once every two months.

"In between our bi-monthly inspections, though, we get tips of problems from law enforcement agencies and citizens," Ziesemer said. "Citizens' calls help us out a lot."

To report a signal malfunction on a DuPage County road, call the Division of Transportation at (630) 407-6900.

Reported failures are usually responded to within 30 minutes.