BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — A traffic signal pole collapsed onto the street at the intersection of Bidwell and Elmwood in Buffalo more than two weeks ago, and the traffic lights there are still out.
The pole snapped and fell on Aug. 27. The collapse has affected all of the traffic lights at the busy intersection, with all remaining lights blinking red on Tuesday.
In the days after the collapse, the city replaced a section of the pole, but not the lights. A temporary four-way stop has been controlling traffic in the meantime.
Michaela Schmidbauer owns Caffe Aroma on the corner of Elmwood and Bidwell. She was relieved no one was hurt when the pole came down.
"Luckily no one was there - either car or pedestrian," Schmidbauer said. She added the collapse was not caused by the wind or a vehicle crash.
"It just snapped," she said.
The pole showed visible signs of deterioration before it fell.
"It was definitely quite rusty," Schmidbauer said.
Schmidbauer said she has heard the problem of unstable traffic signal poles may extend to the rest of the neighborhood.
"We've heard rumors that there are several poles in this neighborhood that are dangerously rusty and the city may even be aware of this and yet none of them are getting fixed," Schmidbauer explained.
WATCH: 'It just snapped': Elmwood intersection left without traffic lights for weeks after pole collapse
This is the second time in a little over a year that a broken traffic signal has impacted the intersection, with a similar incident occurring last August. In January, a signal that fell after a storm also caused crashes at Grant and West Delavan, taking more than 10 days to be fixed by city workers.
I emailed the city Tuesday to ask why the traffic signal was still out. The city said it was waiting on the parts required to repair the light.
I also asked whether the city monitors the condition of traffic poles for safety reasons. The city said it responds to 311 concerns on the subject and added that "the Department of Public Works is also working through an ongoing inventory review of all traffic signal poles and signal components to best address our infrastructure needs in the future."
After I contacted the city, a repair crew arrived at the intersection. Workers said the signal should be fixed by the end of the day, Tuesday.
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