The Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) is leading a Smart Signals Project to upgrade about 365 intersections along key arterials known as Routes of Regional Significance, across Contra Costa County’s 19 cities and unincorporated areas. “We cannot simply build our way out of congestion,” Tim Haile, CCTA executive director, said in an email. “We also have to operate the transportation system we already have more intelligently. That requires connected infrastructure, real-time information and the ability to work across jurisdictional lines.” Contra Costa County is home to nearly 1.2 million residents on the eastern side of the greater Bay Area metro region. Like many parts of the Bay Area, it is plagued by traffic congestion and is turning to innovations in traffic management, transit and other approaches to improve mobility, rather than building new roads. The county has about 1,200 signalized intersections. “Cities and towns across Contra Costa County have been steadily investing in smarter signal technology for years, but those efforts have largely been local,” Haile said. “This is the first time we are bringing all 19 cities and towns and the unincorporated county together in a coordinated, countywide effort designed to benefit the entire region.” CCTA is establishing a Transportation Management Center (TMC), which will provide a central operating environment where the agency can view and analyze information shared by participating jurisdictions and develop a countywide picture of traffic conditions, Andy Dillard, CCTA senior engineer, said. Under this arrangement, local jurisdictions continue to operate their own signal systems, while a center-to-center connection will allow those systems to share information with CCTA as upgraded intersections come online. CCTA has begun purchasing the needed equipment and plans to begin deploying it in October, officials said. Integration with the TMC will occur as intersections come online rather than waiting until every installation