October 21, 2020 NorCal ITE Meeting

Flashing Yellow Arrow (FYA) Presentation

  Description

Flashing Yellow Arrow (FYA) is a signal phasing strategy that is widely used throughout the country which offers drivers the ability to make a permissive left-turn movement in a protected/permissive (or permissive only) operation. Vehicular traffic facing a FYA signal indication is permitted to cautiously enter the intersection to make the movement indicated by the arrow. While permissive left-turn operation has been more commonly facilitated with a green ball signal indication, this treatment presents safety concerns as drivers inadvertently mistake the green ball indication as implying the left-turn has the right-of-way over opposing traffic. Research and experimentation conducted by Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), among other organizations, has demonstrated that the FYA signal indication is an effective alternative to the green ball to indicate a permissive left turn movement. It offers several advantages from a safety and traffic operations standpoint. The City of Roseville has led the way in the region with deployment of FYAs with their pilot project at the intersection of Industrial Avenue and Freedom Way in 2016. Since then the City has converted several additional intersections from protected left-turns to protected/permissive operation with FYAs. The City of Elk Grove recently completed its FYA pilot project, also converting three signals from protected left-turns to protected/permissive operation with FYAs. Other agencies in the Sacramento region are also considering FYA deployments. This presentation will include/focus on safety and operational benefits, current deployments in the Sacramento region, evaluation results, public outreach, and lessons learned.

Time: 11:30am to 1:00pm

Location: Zoom Meeting

Cost: FREE!