In late 2022, the City of Marco Island commissioned an Intelligent Traffic System Study to evaluate traffic flow at the 10 signalized intersections on the Island. At a City Council meeting this year, Council members received a presentation showing the enhancements that have been made and heard recommendations for future improvements. This project springs from the 2022 citizen survey in which residents indicated that minimizing traffic congestion was a top priority.

From this project, six signalized intersections along North Collier Boulevard were placed on a coordinated signal timing plan that led to a savings of 1,200 vehicle hours per week, 2,200 gallons of fuel savings per week and a reduction of 118 seconds per vehicle for those vehicles coming on the Island between 8:00 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. Other improvements made include increasing the pedestrian walk times per Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) standards, increasing the “red clearance interval” (the interval between one light turning red and the other direction turning green) per FDOT standards and developing new timings at all signalized intersections to optimize signal length/cycles.

In this year’s budget, the City Council approved funding for additional intersection improvements at North Barfield Drive and North Collier Boulevard. These improvements will include turn lane modifications, signal control upgrades, pedestrian crossing safety enhancements and replacement of traffic signal lights and mast arms.

Over 200,000 vehicles come on the Island every week, and the City is committed to making investments to reduce congestion, modernize infrastructure and improve safety. Improvements to other signalized intersections, including synchronization between intersections, will follow in the coming years.