Tamaqua borough recently applied for a Pennsylvania Department of Transportation grant that would help pay for a traffic study.

Resident John Sakusky recently asked borough council about the study and its cost.

If the borough receives the Green Light Go grant, Jay Stidham, director of public works, said that the borough will be responsible for 20%, or about $40,000.

“What are they possibly going to accomplish in Tamaqua?” Sakusky asked. “I mean, every year, the Turnpike raises its rates and more trucks come through town. You’ve got the trains, you’ve got everything else. It’s a bottleneck.”

With the intersection of state routes 209 and 309 and the active rail line, Sakusky questioned if there is any real fix for the traffic.

“Other than adjusting the (traffic) lights, what can you possibly change in Tamaqua?” he asked.

“That’s the first thing they have to do — you’re 100% right — they have to adjust the lights,” Councilman Ron Bowman said.

But without a traffic study, Councilwoman Kathy Kunkel said, PennDOT cannot change the timing of traffic signals.

Sakusky asked why it would cost more than $100,000 for a study that would basically just adjust the lights.

“That is such a waste of taxpayer money, it is unbelievable,” Sakusky said.

Borough Manager Kevin Steigerwalt explained that every traffic signal has its own permit through PennDOT. He said changes can’t be made until an engineer “studies” the signals.

“You have to have some justification for changing the timing,” Steigerwalt said.

The Green Light Go grant program is designed to improve the efficiency and operation of existing traffic signals, and is administered by PennDOT’s Bureau of Maintenance and Operations.