‘Father of Cranberry traffic lights’ gives last public tour after 23 years of service
CRANBERRY TWP — Marty McKinney has been working for the Cranberry Traffic Operation for the past 23 years. Starting out as an electrician, McKinney found his calling as manager of traffic operations for the township.
And while traffic in Cranberry has changed drastically over the past two decades, there’s one thing that has remained constant.
McKinney’s willingness to share information and solve problems.
“My favorite part of the job is meeting people and solving people’s quandaries,” McKinney said. “A lot of people call with a complaint and they’re mad about something. We call them back and we talk to them and they find out we’re listening. And we get a positive result from that.”
McKinney is the manager of traffic operations for Cranberry Township. He and his team are responsible for more than 52 traffic lights for the township and surrounding areas and the more than 80,000 daily commuters that rely on them. On Tuesday, March 26, McKinney, who will be retiring in April, gave his last public tour.
McKinney has provided about eight tours a year to a variety of groups ranging from firefighters to Girl Scouts.
“If you listen to the world, one of the major problems here in Cranberry Township is that there’s too much traffic,” McKinney said. “And my answer to that is I defy you to find a community that’s working any harder to manage traffic. You won’t find it.”
With more than 15 55-inch monitors and top-of-the-line technology, McKinney and his team use constant live data to make decisions on how to make traffic as efficient as possible for the area.
Township manger Daniel Santoro said not only has McKinney been an “exceptional employee,” but he has played an intricate role in creating the state-of-the-art traffic operation facility.
“Marty has helped envision and grow the transportation network of smart signals and smart traffic technology that we have throughout the township,” Santoro said. “Marty was here with us in the infancy and was instrumental to bring us to where we are today.”
Starting out as an electrician, McKinney was hired after years of working as a contractor for the township before taking on the role as the manager of traffic operations.
“I got the job here because I was responsive to their problems and needs as a contractor,” McKinney said. “And it was funny because they would do a project and after the project was done and paid for they realized they didn’t do something so they called me.”
And 23 years later, McKinney is still lending a hand and sharing information whenever needed.
Public works director Kelly Maure has worked with McKinney for more than two decades. She said she is spending McKinney’s last month “touting” McKinney’s countless contributions to the township.
“I really think he’s a visionary,” Maure said. “From coming in as an electrician to building this, he really is remarkable.”
After retirement McKinney will still act as a consultant for the traffic operations facility and the Public Works department hired Devin Martin, another electrician, to take over for McKinney.
“There’s a lot of information,” Marin said. “It’s like trying to drink from a fire hose, but (McKinney) has been a good teacher.”
Maure said she is confident that the township will remain in good hands after McKinney’s retirement but looks forward to passing off McKinney’s years of experience and knowledge to the next generation.
“This is his legacy” she said. “He left it for us.”
