Anyone who lives or works on Tucson's east side would probably know that the Golf Links and Houghton intersection is a busy one. Sandra Schenker lives a few blocks south of it and is certainly no stranger to it.
"At least two times a day," she said. "Going back and forth to work."
A left turn arrow is causing some east side folks some concern... the details in just two hours on @kgun9 on your side at 10 pic.twitter.com/Xum8guT82w
— Max Darrow (@MaxDarrowTV) June 12, 2018
Schenker says there used to be a leading left turn arrow for traffic headed northbound. Now, the arrow is at the end of the light cycle. While it's a small change, Schenker says it causes her a big headache every day.
"Sometimes I can't even get out of my neighborhood because the traffic is all backed up to where my street is," she said. "That's the only way out of the neighborhood."
A spokesperson with the Tucson Department of Transportation gave KGUN9 this statement:
"Left turn arrows were installed at the intersection of Golf Links Rd. and Houghton Rd. the last week of April for westbound Golf Links Road travel and southbound Houghton Road travel. The arrows introduced more delay at the intersection than was anticipated. TDOT Traffic Engineering reviewed the signal operation and made timing changes by adding 10 additional seconds to the cycle length in early May. It appears the added cycle length has helped traffic flow, but staff is scheduled to once again evaluate traffic flow and later this month."
-Tucson Department of Transportation
Schenker says she noticed a bit of a difference after TDOT made the first change. However, she still feels the intersection is worse off than it was, before the change.
"I would like it to go back to the way it was until they actually widen Houghton," she said.
