Heavy traffic is hard to handle, and even harder to control. Houstonians will remember being trapped in cars running from Hurricane Rita in 2005, but the rush from Rita can't hold a candle to the gridlock that seized Beijing four years later.
Motorists in China's capital, in a strange twist of fate, became mired in a 62-mile traffic jam. The twelve day motoring meltdown was caused by vehicles carrying roadwork supplies, intended, believe it or not, to relieve traffic congestion.
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METRO’s Kai Zhao, (below) emigrated from China years before that traffic nightmare, and sees humor in good intentions gone bad, but he doesn't have a lot of time to laugh as he works through a pile of papers at his makeshift desk on the corner of Smith and Capitol.
Bob Webb, systems quality control manager for contractor HRT, looks on as METRO Traffic Engineer Kai Zhao reviews the axle counter case (ACC) test at Capitol and Smith. The axle counter is a safety device and this test is the first of 14 needed to clear train (bar) and traffic signals at this intersection.
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"It's tedious work testing for continuity and resistance," observes Zhao as crewmember Shawn Carter reads wire colors into a handheld radio. "But it's the basis for everything we do. Get one cable wrong and you mess up the whole system."
Zhao spent 10 years as a consultant developing the METRO Regional Computer Traffic Signaling System before becoming METRO staff. Today he is busy with his list of potential issues. The check goes on, and Zhao keeps his eyes focused and his ears attentive. He won't stop until all the boxes are checked and trains are cleared to roll on METRO's brand new tracks. With more than 300 miles of wire and cable spanning three new lines, he's a busy man.
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