Enhancements to a pedestrian crossing near the Iron Bridge subdivision entrance could happen before the end of the year, contributing to pedestrians’ safety crossing Thatcher Drive.
During the recent city council meeting, council voted unanimously to have city administration enhance the intersection at Thatcher Drive and Iron Drive with a painted crosswalk, warning signs and a speed reduction this year, while city hall should complete a pedestrian count before June 2021 and present other options for further enhancements.
Members of the public works, infrastructure and environment advisory committee discussed this issue during their recent meeting and forwarded the recommendation to council for consideration. The issue has also been on city hall’s radar since August 2019 after residents submitted a petition in support of a pedestrian crossing.
The speed limit on Thatcher Drive near there is 60 kilometres per hour, so city administration would suggest lowering that limit to 50 km/h, explained city manager Jim Puffalt. Meanwhile, this initiative was included as part of intersection tenders, and overall, everything is within budget and $26,000 would cover the project’s costs.
The speed limit would probably have to be reduced well before the intersection — specifically, near VLA Gate and 15th Avenue — since there is a dip in the road at that location, Coun. Dawn Luhning pointed out. She wondered if the advisory committee had consulted with traffic experts about the area and about the best way to handle this situation.
The pedestrian crossing at West Park near 11th Avenue is also difficult to navigate because as motorists come around the corner, it can sometimes be tough to see the speed change sign, she continued. She lives on that side of the community and knows it’s easy to quickly reach 60 km/h.
“I understand that side of the city (near Iron Bridge) wants something to happen. Maybe this is the right answer to reduce to 50 (km/h),” Luhning added. “But I don’t know if it will help because the crossing is in a dip.”
The speed reduction would likely happen before the crossing and then near Simcoe Street after First Avenue, said Puffalt. Meanwhile, the West Park crossing is a full overhead crossing with flashing lights. The Iron Bridge intersection would have lights at eye level due to the dip.
Coun. Crystal Froese thought this might be an opportunity for the municipality to apply for grant funding from the provincial traffic fund, which would provide $100,000 per location for speed technology. She pointed to the traffic control measures near Cornerstone Christian School as examples, which show speed and collect data on speeders.
The speed reductions would be similar to what is seen near YaraCentre, where the limit goes from 60 km/h to 50 km/h and back up again, said Coun. Chris Warren. Meanwhile, the intersection at 11th Avenue into West Park is a push-button mechanism with flashing stoplights that are overhead and easy for motorists to see.
That is the same goal that the Iron Bridge community has, but that would cost many thousands of dollars in infrastructure funding, he added. The plan city administration has brought forward is cost-effective.
A resident sent Mayor Fraser Tolmie a message recently saying a trucker was driving in the community and did not realize children were crossing the street, he said. The woman who sent the message had to pull her van out to generate awareness about the children.
“I know this is a temporary solution, but it’s good to have something temporary than nothing at all,” he added.
The next regular council meeting is Monday, Oct. 19.
