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More signage to be added north of city on Highway 4

May 30, 2018 | 12:00 PM

A much discussed traffic area on Highway 4 is getting one new speed sign after council agreed unanimously May 28. 

The decision came from a May 14 discussion between mayor and council about the intersection on the service road near Home Hardware and alerting drivers of the speed change.

“If you turn out of Home Hardware, there are no signs until the flashing light [one],” Coun. Tom Harrison said during the May 14 meeting. “I’m just asking if there’s a better way to sign it.”

Coun. Glen Winkler commented that public perception is important, as many people tend to think this area was built as a speed trap for enforcement officers.

In 2016, after much feedback and consultation with the public, a crosswalk was installed at Highway 4 near McDonalds and the flashing light signs on the south and north side of the city were installed to alert drivers of the speed limit change, which changed from 60 km/h to 50.

At the May 14 meeting, city manager Diana Burton said most of the speeding tickets in the city are actually given out in school zones, with very few coming from flashing speed sign areas. She said based on the guidelines set out by the Ministry of Highways, the current signage is sufficient, as the access road to Home Hardware would not be considered a major intersection.

“However, there is also room within those guidelines to install another sign to remind drivers coming out of Home Hardware of the posted speed limit,” Burton said. “Since there are no reasons not to install an additional sign and it may improve driver safety and awareness, administration is in support of this change.”

 

kathy.gallant@jpbg.ca

On Twitter @ReporterKath