About 80,000 college basketball fans flocked to Arlington Monday night, from Kentucky and New England, as UConn faced UK in the Men's NCAA Final Four game at AT&T Stadium.
The Arlington Police Department prepared for the crowds and potential traffic jams thanks to a sea of monitors, watching intersections and managing traffic flow.
In fact, with a press of a button 40 traffic lights can be changed from red to green.
The traffic management center has been around since 2008, it’s set up to help manage traffic during high-volume events.
“We have all these cameras on our intersections and roadways so we can see where there is congestion and we can manipulate the signals,” said Mindy Carmichael, with the city's Public Works Department.
About 125 cameras are set to look at the intersections throughout the city. With a press of a button, 40 traffic lights can be changed, pushing cars into the stadium or away from the stadium. Mobile electric signs are also controlled by the traffic management center.
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The cameras also help police response time.
“The TMC can contact our officers, they can identify problems, tell us about traffic concerns so we can get officers out there before it becomes a problem” said Lt. Leo Davis, with the Arlington police.
In about an hour and a half, the traffic management center can get 80,000 people or more out of town.
