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New traffic signal upgrades aimed at helping emergency vehicles navigate intersections safer, faster

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Published  June 13, 2025 5:24pm EDT
Hillsborough County
FOX 13 News
Traffic signal control in emergency situations

Traffic signal control in emergency situations

Emergency vehicles in Hillsborough County will now get a green light when headed to emergencies thanks to a new smart traffic control signal system being installed at 600 intersections. FOX 13's Aaron Mesmer reports.

The Brief

    • Hillsborough County is installing high-tech traffic signal upgrades to help emergency vehicles navigate intersections safer and faster.
    • The devices sense when an emergency vehicle is approaching and switch to green, with the cross signals changing to red.
    • The goal is to reduce response times.

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. - Hillsborough County crews are installing a new Smart Traffic Control system at 600 intersections and on 175 emergency vehicles.

How it works

Emergency Vehicle Preemption, or EVP, sensors attached to traffic signals detect when an emergency vehicle is approaching and switch the light to green, while setting crossing signals to red.

The backstory:

By giving emergency vehicles the green light and holding crossing traffic at a red light, EVP ensures a safer and faster path for responders, significantly improving their ability to reach emergency scenes promptly, Hillsborough County Fire Rescue said.

"It'll start clearing those intersections ahead of us. So as we approach them, we have the green lights," said Rob Herrin, HCFR's Public Safety Information Chief.

The system uses GPS, cellular networks and radio communications to link the signals and vehicles.

Reducing response times

Hillsborough County firefighters have already seen an impact, reducing response times in areas where the devices are already installed by about 30 seconds.

"Thirty seconds in a matter of minutes, statistically, is pretty good and for people that are in cardiac arrest and for people whose homes are on fire, that 30 seconds can make a tremendous difference and we anticipate that number improving as well," Herrin said.

The Source: Information for this story was gathered by FOX 13 reporter Aaron Mesmer.

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