Lest drivers be worried about working traffic lights during another blackout, the Department of Transportation is about to assuage your fears. Next year, the DOT plans to install 500 batteries as back-up power sources at intersections throughout the city. With 11,640 lights in the city, the DOT will look at which at the intersections that are busiest or serve as access-ways to bridges or tunnels. Yes, we need to get those commuters out right away! The batteries are reported to last "several hours", but as people who where here during the last blackout will remember, some areas went more than "several hours" without power.
After reading this, Gothamist wondered where the cars going to go if people flood the streets like they did in 2003. And are the crosswalk signs going to have backup power too? Also, can solar power be used as a backup power source? Or some solar powered battery packs? Answers people, we need answers!
