Traffic lights have roots in Ohio

We don’t pay much attention to traffic lights, but they were a big deal in the early 1900s. In fact, Ohio was one of the first states to use traffic lights. A semaphore signal was first tried in Toledo in 1908. The words “stop” and “go” were illuminated with red and green lenses and lit by lamps at night.

In August 1914, a traffic signal was installed in Cleveland on the corner of East 105th Street and Euclid Avenue. It had two colors, red and green, and a buzzer to provide a warning for color changes. The rest is history.

– James DiFrangia, Stevens Strategic Communications