We’re always debating if there is anyone behind the traffic veil – scoping out what is really happening on LA streets. You see the cameras, you brake over the magnetic sensors looped into concrete at the intersections, you wonder why the red light won’t change. But is it all connected to anything? Is anyone out there really looking out for our traffic interests?
This short five minute film from KCET public television says yes, there is someone watching. The Automated Traffic surveillance and Control System (ATSAC) system deep beneath City Hall has people working to monitor intersections in real time, pan and zoom those omnipresent cameras, and make calls for repairs.
Every local NPR listener has heard the voice of KCRW’s (89.9 FM) Traffic Queen Kajon Cermak during rush hour telling us where there are sig alerts and the best routes to take or avoid. Finally, we get to meet Kajon in person as she visits the ATSAC, and taste some of the passion she has for one aspect of LA we all get involved in: traffic.
