Wow! Thad cool, I've Been to Detroit but haven't seen a set up like that

At least it remains...for now. Its slated for removal

Would love to have it, but the postage ! !

The cluster is roughly 150 pounds. This is the story behind why you can't get anything from Detroit:

My buddy Joe (collector, not a member here) was able to talk to one of the traffic yard guards and get into the yard to grab (and pay for) several lights. Namely all the lights along his fence in that other picture i put up. When the city found out the guard was reprimanded for selling off city property, which needed to be turned into the city and documented before it was transported to an aluminum shredding facility per city order. So basically the city doesn't want the lights going to the public where they will lose money on them (collectors would sell them on ebay)

Cheapos. Why take them down in the first place? Just change the controll box and possibly retrofit the case to LED. If they're so concerned about money, retrofit. Cheaper and easier.

Keep in mind the signals are old and no longer warranted.

The remaining old stuff are located in places which no longer have the traffic that requires the intersection to have a signal. Some have been upgraded to LED but the wiring and existing hardware is wearing out.

A new controller alone would be $25,000 per intersection. When its not needed they come down and are replaced with stop signs. At intersections that DO require signalization, the old stuff is replaced with brand new equipment.

I still don't get why their so concerned about not giving away equippement. It's not like aluminum is worth that much anyways.

Ok...this is the reason behind why not:

1. Government Property. Old or new, it is public property bought with taxpayer money, it was put up per city order, and is taken down per city order.

2. The city does not want to lose money on the equipment, and does not want to see it on ebay.

3. The equipment is 65 years old, the wiring is worn out and the city cannot be liable for issues resulting from worn cloth wires or other issues. Burn the house down, and sue the city. Yes it's possible. It only takes one person to sue 'em too. And people will sue for anything

Jobsworths who are not trained to do anything more than bark like seals, though I have met seals with more ability and intelligence.

Well, I don't know about there, but here the State of Rhode Island taxes almost everything. I'm sure they'll pay off a few aluminum signals in about a week.

The city of Detroit could just sell the signals to collectors, it would be win - win, they would make a profit and signal collectors would be happy.

So should the City of Toronto, I would have bought one of those 8-8-8s and incandescent peds they removed last year.

Well I believe Stacey Electric is contracted to maintain the signals in Toronto, I have had quite good luck with contractors giving away old equipment. You could always try contacting them and see if they have anything.

Gailgrove said "The city of Detroit could just sell the signals to collectors, it would be win - win, they would make a profit and signal collectors would be happy."

The contractor "Rauhorn Electric" maintains much of the signals in the city. There are several reasons why signals arent sold. First off....this stuff is 50-60 years old. Imagine the liability if someone were to start a house fire because they wired up a light with rotted cloth wiring. Not everyone has electrical know-how. Lawsuits would be aplenty. The city and contractor get money for shredding the signals, and some parts are saved for quick fixes to signals not ready to come out yet. Other signals are put on display in the shop.

Whether or not there are collector interest, signals are governnment property unless specifically slated for the sell (usually with an auction of city property) to the public or private contractors that deal with selling traffic equipment to the public

liablitly these days it should be someone's own fault if their wiring isnt up to code and causes a fire, not anyone elses! so much stuff goes to waste today that could be saved, but someone has to make money, sometimes its just money that people care about and protecting it (not getting sued)

The signals are bought with taxpayer dollars, which means the taxpayers own the lights, which means the signals should be given back to the taxpayers.

SELL! The old stuff on ebay and well It will not make a dent is the USA 17t debt But it will help.

I still think that cities should open up a surplus store and sell stuff like old streetlights, traffic lights, signs, etc and make some spare cash. Of course they'll probably need say that you're buying this stuff at your own risk.

The contractors get hold of the equipment. It's their call whether or not to sell it. They are hesitant because if you give old equipment to some Joe-Shmo on the street and he burns his house down wiring it up then, as stupid as the guy was, it was government property that the contractor is responsible for. Most of the old Detroit stuff is gone now when MDOT stepped in, the wiring was all worn and falling apart. I opened up some cabinets down there, the intersections placed in permanent flash mode awaiting removal had no controller or monitor inside the cabinet. Just a flasher that had been shorted to flash the lights continuously. It makes sense to upgrade or remove what is not needed anymore. Especially in a city with as much population loss and deterioration as the D.