Fifteen Service de sécurité incendie de Montréal (SIM) fire stations will benefit from automated traffic signal preemption giving them priority when trucks leave the stations, and four other stations are slated to have this device installed in their vicinity in the coming months.
The traffic light priority system for fire department vehicles helps to ensure the safety of pedestrians, cyclists and drivers circulating near a fire station by indicating the obligation to yield the right of sway to trucks leaving the area. In an emergency situation where every second counts, this type of system helps reduce firefighter response times to emergency calls as well as the possibility of accidents when these vehicles leave the fire station.
Stations that have this system in their vicinity are either located on busy streets or have vehicle doors that are a very short distance from a public road (ex. Station 30, located at the corner of avenue Laurier Ouest and boulevard Saint-Laurent).
Pilot project in the sector surrounding Station 42
As part of a pilot project carried out across the territory served by Station 42 in the Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough, smart traffic light controllers were installed on a portion of boulevard de l'Acadie and rue De Salaberry. As a result, trucks equipped with a send or transmission system can now contact the controller in order to obtain priority at traffic lights. With the project progressing well, other roads are likely to be equipped with these systems as well.
While firefighters benefit from this type of priority system, they are also required to observe the Highway Safety Code and take all the necessary measures to ensure their safety and that of the citizens circulating on public roads.