New traffic lights installed in Fairbanks Ranch

Two new traffic signals are being installed on San Dieguito Road at Circa Del Sur and at Via dos Valles, outside the two gated entrances to the Fairbanks Ranch community.

The traffic signals are a County of San Diego project that has been fully funded by the Fairbanks Ranch Association, according to General Manager Ray Sohl.

“The Fairbanks Ranch Association has been looking at ways to improve safety on San Dieguito Road for many years. We started this project in 2016 to address the increased traffic and numerous accidents outside our community,” Sohl said.

There are six ingress/egress points along San Dieguito Road that access Fairbanks Ranch neighborhoods and it can be difficult for traffic leaving the community to pull onto the busy road.The Fairbanks Ranch Association proposed the installation of the two new signalized intersections to the San Diego County Traffic Committee in 2017, paying for the design and traffic study.

The committee supported the signalization in a 9-2 vote—one opposed believed the signals were a low priority and one preferred roundabouts. The San Dieguito Community Planning Group also reviewed the signals but did not take a vote, providing input about the need for proper signal timing and the fact that roundabouts would likely cause roadway delays.

The lights were subsequently placed on the traffic signal priority list by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.

While the Association privately paid for the capital improvement project, the county will be responsible for maintenance.

“We expect that the traffic signals at both gates will be operational by the end of September and will provide much safer conditions for our residents to enter and exit San Dieguito Road,” Sohl said.