Three-way stop signs will not be installed at the intersection of 11th Avenue Northeast and Oxford Street East because traffic volumes are low and accidents have been minimal, city hall says.
The city clerk’s office received a petition in July from residents who live within 90 metres of the intersection asking for the traffic measures to be installed there, a council report explained. Out of nine eligible residents, five were in favour of the three-way stop.
This issue then came to the public works, infrastructure and environmental advisory committee, which passed it on to city council.
During the most recent council meeting, council voted unanimously to deny the request for a three-way stop at this intersection.
“It is not a high traffic area. It’s out in the sticks,” said Coun. Doug Blanc. “There was a tree that was blocking views, but it will be trimmed and resolve any issues there.”
The issue of installing such signage arose after resident Armond Fetter contacted the department of engineering in April by phone and later by letter, a council report explained. In his letter, he said that traffic was “getting unbearable” because of the new industrial development nearby.
“… this is just a little country road (and) that’s the way it’s been used — no speed limit,” Fetter said. “Times have changed since 20 years ago or even seven years ago.”
Area residents wanted to see action since their request — stretching back several years — was taking longer to resolve than they wanted, he continued. Spraying a dust inhibitor on the road was too costly, while heavy trucks would ruin that preventative measure with their repeated road use.
There are 15 residential lots in the area available for sale, Fetter added. There are also commercial lots available to purchase, which means more traffic would come down Oxford Street East in the future.
City hall responded to Fetter by letter in June and said that the enhanced traffic measures he had suggested were considered and reviewed against the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices, the Traffic Bylaw and the CMJ Development Transportation Standards, the report continued.
The engineering department conducted a traffic warrant review on Nov. 3, 2020, and found that the results did not support a three-way stop at 11th Avenue Northeast and Oxford Street East.
The review discovered that 111 vehicles entered this intersection over 13 hours, whereas 250 vehicles were necessary for the city to act. Furthermore, a review of accidents from 2015 to 2019 determined no collisions had occurred in this area, whereas two collisions per year would have pushed the municipality to act.
The Traffic Bylaw indicated that an all-way stop sign should not be used as a speed control device or at intersections that are offset, poorly defined or geometrically substandard, as is the case with this intersection, the council report said.
Based on these two criteria, the engineering department recommended against installing three-way stop signs.
The next regular council meeting is Monday, Sept. 27.
