The Traffic Signal Engineering and Operations Division is responsible for construction, maintenance, and operation of traffic signals and flasher devices located on County roads and City of Rochester streets; overseeing the Computerized Signal System that continuously monitors traffic signals and traffic flow; and operation of the Colonel Patrick O’Rorke Memorial Drawbridge. This Division is also responsible for operating and maintaining highway lighting fixtures along the Rochester area expressway system and some light fixtures on State and County arterial roads.

This Division includes four (4) Sections:

• James R. Pond Regional Traffic Operations Center (RTOC) Section
• Traffic Signal Maintenance and Operations Section
• Highway Lighting Section
• O’Rorke Bridge Operations Section

James R. Pond Regional Traffic Operations Center (RTOC)

Monroe County's James R. Pond Regional Traffic Operations Center (RTOC) opened in 2002.  It was renamed in memory of visionary leader James R. Pond, P.E., PTOE on August 8, 2022. RTOC is a state-of-the-art traffic management center that hosts a wide variety of traffic emergency responders under one roof. It serves as the primary traffic management center for the Greater Rochester area. Included within the facility are the Monroe County DOT (MCDOT) traffic signal system and dispatchers, New York State DOT (NYSDOT) dispatchers, traffic signal maintenance shops for MCDOT and NYSDOT, MCDOT's expressway lighting shop, New York State Police Troop E Zone 1 headquarters, and Monroe County Airport operations. These players each contribute a different viewpoint of traffic which, when put togehter, form complete detection and response capabilities for both the daily routine of traffic as well as traffic incident management.

• The Monroe County Department of Transportation manages the City and County arterial street network, including operation and maintenance of approximately 630 traffic signals and 200 other devices such as warning flashers and Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFBs).  There are approximately 540 traffic signals and 130 traffic cameras that can be remotely controlled and monitored from RTOC. Maintenance of the expressway lighting system and dispatch of County highway and bridge crews are also based at RTOC;
• The New York State Department of Transportation manages the area expressway and primary arterial system, including pavement temperature detection, traffic signals, traffic cameras, dynamic message signs, and the Highway Emergency Local Patrol (HELP) truck program;
• The New York State Police are the patrolling agency for the area expresway system. Their presence includes both incident detection and management capabilities;
• The Monroe County Airport Authority manages the runways, taxiways, and lights for the Frederick Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport (GRIA). This includes weather and pavement temperature detection.

The Traffic Operations Center Section is responsible for modeling, monitoring, and controlling approximately 540 traffic signals on the County's fiber optic computerized traffic signal system located mostly on major City streets, County roads, and State highways in the Towns of Brighton, Gates, Greece, Henrietta, Irondequoit, Parma, Penfield, Perinton, Pittsford, and Webster. The signal system monitors traffic flow and utilizes signal-timing patterns of various lengths based on traffic conditions and time-of-day. Signal phasing and timing is determined by software modeling, and maintenance concerns are received and dispatched for the remaining 300 signals and devices not on the signal system.

Traffic Signal Maintenance and Operations Section

The Traffic Signal Maintenance and Operations Section is responsible for the construction, maintenance, and operation of approximately 830 traffic signal devices, including approximately 630 3-color traffic signals, approximately 200 flasher devices and Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFBs), and approximately 130 traffic monitoring cameras located on State highways, County roads, and City streets to ensure a safe road network throughout the County. Work includes the maintenance responsibility for all components of the computerized signal system, the traffic monitoring camera system, and electrical maintenance support for the Colonel Patrick O'Rorke Memorial Bridge and the Irondequoit Bay Outlet Bridge (IBOB).

Traffic Signals Maintained by MCDOT

The Department of Transportation maintains approximately 820 traffic signal devices in the City of Rochester surrounding and Towns within Monroe County, including approximately 630 3-color traffic signals and approximately 200 flasher devices and Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFBs). Lists of traffic signals that are maintained and operated by Monroe County DOT are below:

• Traffic Signals List, Sorted by Municipality (PDF)
• Traffic Signals List, Sorted Alphabetically (PDF)
• Traffic Signals List, Sorted by Signal Number (PDF)

If you experience any problems with these traffic signals, please contact RTOC at 585-753-7760 or [email protected]. RTOC is staffed 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. You can also contact us to report traffic signals that are not maintained by Monroe County DOT; we will forward the information to the proper agency.

Remember: NYS Vehicle and Traffic Law requires that drivers treat a malfunctioning traffic signal that is completely dark (no red, yellow, or green indications) as an all-way stop by stopping at the intersection and yielding to other stopped traffic before proceeding through the intersection.

Monroe County DOT Traffic Signals Map (PDF)

Pedestrian Signals and How to Use Them (PDF)

Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFBs):

High Intensity Activated Crosswalks (HAWKs):

Leading Pedestrian Intervals (LPIs):

Please watch the following videos to learn more about modern traffic control devices:

• Flashing Yellow Arrows
• Rules of the Roundabout

Highway Lighting Section

The Monroe County Department of Transportation is responsible for operating and maintaining 4,530 light fixtures along the Rochester area expressway system, including 2,815 fixtures outside the City and 1,715 within the City. Both the expressway mainline and the access ramps are included in this lighting system. Most of this lighting is provided on standard light poles, either in the median of the expressway or along its edges. There are also some locations that use high masts, which are very tall light poles used to illuminate a larger area with a single pole.

The County is currently undergoing a series of projects to replace the high pressure sodium light fixtures with LED fixtures. This will result in more visually pleasant lighting, along with a 50% savings in energy costs. Light poles that are located in areas where drivers could potentially collide with them use a breakaway safety base. Upon impact, the base is designed to break off, allowing the pole to fall forward rather than remain rigid. This protects the driver and occupants of the vehicle from injury by dissipating the energy of the collision. In a typical collision, the colliding vehicle passes through before the pole falls, the fallen pole lands out of harm’s way, and the pole can potentially be reset on a new base and used again.

We also fund the cost of operating and maintaining 760 lights along some State arterial highways and 240 lights along some County highways. However, there is no direct correlation between the road jurisdiction and the lighting along the road. Regardless of the road jurisdiction, most street lighting is provided by the Towns and the City of Rochester. Within the Towns, utility companies (primarily RG&E) own most of the infrastructure and perform the actual operation and maintenance activities, including those funded by the County.

To report lighting maintenance problems along the expressway system, please contact RTOC at 585-753-7760 or [email protected]. For all other roads, call your local utility company.

O'Rorke Bridge Operations Section

The O'Rorke Bridge Operations Section operates the Colonel Patrick O’Rorke Memorial Drawbridge on behalf on New York State DOT in order to move people and goods safely and efficiently over the Genesee River between the City of Rochester and Town of Irondequoit. The bridge operates 24 hours per day, seven days per week, from April 1 through December 15 each year, and with at least 12 hours advance notice at all other times. It is estimated that the bridge is lifted approximately 350 times per year. The lower part of the Genesee River is classified by the U. S. Coast Guard as a navigational channel and federal law requires that the waterway be unobstructed (CFR 117.785).