Hudson Valley’s Worst Red Light Breaks Again, Stranding Drivers

Like clockwork, the most annoying traffic light in the Hudson Valley is has broken down again. Drivers wonder just how long will it take to fix this time.

Now that it's March it must mean that it's time for commuters to be completely inconvenienced by one of the worst-designed traffic lights in the Hudson Valley. For most of the year this light works as it should, but every March this terribly maintained light just stops turning green, causing headaches for after-hour travelers.

Imagine pulling up to a light to get across Route 9 and that light never changes. No matter how long you sit there the light remains red. You see other cars opposite of you come and go, all of the other traffic signals turn from green to red and you are still stuck in the same spot with no way to move.

That's the experience drivers are having once again at the intersection of Route 9 and 9D in the Town of Poughkeepsie. The traffic light on the corner near the South Hills Mall is once again busted, not sensing cars traveling from the Village of Wappingers on 9D who are attempting to turn left onto Route 9 North.

This morning I sat through three light cycles. As cars from the other direction were allowed on Route 9, my light never changed. After rolling back and forth over the sensor, changing lanes and wiggling my tires on different parts of the road the light remained red, forcing me to wait for an opportunity to just run through it.

I wrote about this exact problem last March when the perennial issue popped up again. It seems that every year the sensor just stops working and it takes weeks for anyone to do anything about it. The problem mostly affects early morning and late evening travelers who need to trigger the light in order for it to change.

For now, drivers will have to practice patience and figure out a creative way to safely make it through the intersection. Hopefully, the problem will be addressed faster than it has been in years past. Until then I may need to find a different route.