City hall expects upgrades to the intersection at Caribou Street West and Ninth Avenue Northwest to take another two months, which means motorists will have to continue waiting patiently for the green light.
Coun. Dawn Luhning raised the issue of how slowly the lights at the intersection turn green during the July 12 regular city council meeting. She pointed out that the previous light standards had sensors that detected vehicles and would change the lights faster if no one else was around. Now, though, traffic sits for a longer period waiting to go.
“I want us to look at that,” she added.
The municipality performed upgrades to that intersection except for the sensors and timing for the lights, information contained in a report that council received during a strategic planning meeting in June, explained Bevan Harlton, director of engineering services. “Inductive loops” need to be installed to manage the lights better, but those — and the sensors — won’t be installed until the cast iron pipes in that area are replaced.
“So, for the next six to eight weeks, it will run off a timer,” he added. “Those loops will be in before the end of summer.”
Coun. Doug Blanc was also curious about the intersection, particularly with newly installed turning signs, some of which are covered. He wondered why city hall decided to turn the centre lane into a left-turn lane instead of allowing both lanes to go forward.
This information was also in the report presented during the strategic planning meeting, said Harlton. A traffic consultant recommended the change as part of a redesign plan; the left lane is now dedicated to left turns. Along with painted boxes on the road, these changes will help buses safely turn onto the roads.
“The big one (important aspect) is that the dedicated left-turn lane is just safer. So when you’re making that left turn, you’re not looking in your rear-view mirror seeing if someone is going to rear-end you,” he added.
The next regular council meeting is Monday, July 26.
