Corktown Pilot Gives Detroit Fire Trucks a Faster Green Light

Every red light can matter when a Detroit fire truck is racing to a fire or a hospital call. A new 90-day test in Corktown is checking whether connected traffic signals can turn green as a truck enters an intersection. The trial began last month and is expected to continue through November.

The system activates when a fire truck arrives with its warning lights, siren, or both switched on. Detroit Fire Chief David Nelson says cutting even a few seconds from response time can help residents. It also matters when oncoming traffic has already stopped. In emergency work, that small opening may provide the time needed to save a life.

Miovision is supplying the technology and working with Detroit and Haas Alerts. Haas Alerts has also developed a tool that warns drivers when an emergency vehicle is about to enter an intersection. If the Corktown test succeeds, the city hopes to extend the system to EMS and police vehicles.

The safety issue goes beyond faster travel. Records from the Michigan Office of Highway Planning show that emergency vehicles were involved in more than 2,600 crashes in 2025. Police vehicles accounted for 1,937 of them, ambulances for 419, and fire vehicles for 255. Two crashes were fatal. Miovision reports that similar programs in Texas and Tennessee led to quicker responses and fewer accidents.