Five Innisfil mothers have banded together to create a petition, urging the town to install lights at the busy intersection of 7th Line and St. John's Road.
The online petition states that community members living in the area are in strong support of having a set of traffic lights or a four-way stop installed to help calm traffic flow.
Currently, there is only a two-way stop, on the east and west sides of the 7th Line.
The creator of the petition, Sarah Webb claims sight lines when turning left on St. John's from the 7th Line do not meet minimum standards and, as a result, multiple collisions have occurred on the stretch of the road.
She says despite visibility, many cars can be seen speeding upwards of 30 kilometres per hour over the speed limit around the bend, particularly in the late evening.
The mothers worry that with more and more young families moving to the area, the town needs to be made aware of the busy intersection. They claim it is unsafe to walk, and residents living on St. John's Road have encountered near-misses while trying to merge into traffic from their driveways.
"The health, safety and welfare of our residents and children will continue to be at risk if this issue is not addressed soon," reads the petition, which so far has garnered 250 signatures.
The women are hoping to raise awareness of the issue and encourage neighbours to sign and share online.
Webb has lived in the area for nine years and, up until two years ago, she was the only one in her neighbourhood with small children.
"It's just become more of a pressing matter because there are so many kids living here," she said. "It is a very dangerous stretch of road. I've never felt comfortable having my children on it."
Webb has two daughters, ages six and eight.
In February, the women approached the town requesting that a traffic evaluation be done in the area. Webb said she was told the study was recently completed, but that the data didn't show the average speed being high enough to warrant any traffic-calming measures.
"We were told we didn't meet the minimum average above the speed limit," she said. "That's why we started the petition and we're hoping to be on the agenda for the next traffic safety committee meeting in August."
"I witness people speeding around that corner all the time," she said. "To me, the average doesn't matter; it's an area of danger regardless of what the average (speed) is."
"Anyone who has a set of eyes can stand on that corner for five or 10 minutes and see how dangerous it is," said Webb, noting tire marks left by speeding cars are visible on the 7th Line.
"It's a known problem having people speed through there," she said.
"I’ve lived in Alcona for over 20 years. We need to finally do something about this intersection as it’s becoming increasingly more dangerous as the population of this town continues to rise," resident Madison Leduc wrote on the petition site.
Flo Allen is the self-described “grandmother of a 25-year-old” who walks to work along St. John’s Road. “I will not let her walk along there after dark,” she said, due to the danger of speeding vehicles crossing over the demarcation lines that separate pedestrians from traffic. And, she says, in the winter time "it’s just horrendous.”
The issue is speeding, says Allen – making it particularly dangerous for small children, and seniors with mobility challenges.
“They come around the corner, and they’re instantly upon you," she said.
The statistics may suggest that it’s not a high-collision intersection, but Alexxa Abi-Jaoude says, “I’ve seen three accidents on that road since we’ve moved in.”
With new homes being built on Line 7, traffic levels continue to increase.
The town was asked for a copy of the study, which staff presented to council in September 2019. In the report to council, it was recommended not to proceed with the installation of an all-way stop at the intersection due to safety and operational concerns.
The study showed: "Installing an unwarranted all-way stop at this location would have a negative impact on traffic flow in this part of Alcona, possibly make the intersection more dangerous, and open the town up to additional liability. Therefore, no changes to the intersection are recommended."
The study suggested that as long as the vegetation in the area was kept trimmed, the sight lines would be preserved.
Traffic data was also collected over the long weekend in August 2019, which showed the installation of an all-way stop would “introduce significant delays to the traffic on St. John's Road while providing only a modest reduction in delay for traffic along 7th Line”.
The report called the use of unwarranted stop signs 'unsafe', as per the United States Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and warned it would open the town to legal liability.
South Simcoe police was also asked about the number of collisions that have occurred at the intersection since the study was conducted.
Sgt. David Phillips sympathized with residents and their concerns, but said the intersection did not even register as one of the top 20 in Innisfil with the most collisions, the No. 1 being 20th Sideroad and Innisfil Beach Road.
"We don't see these numbers," said Phillips.
A staff report showed there had been three collisions in the three years prior to the study.
Phillips said the complaints from residents about the intersection do not match what the traffic data shows, and there are other areas in town that are more in need of additional resources.
As for the sight lines, the sergeant acknowledged they are "not the greatest," but supported the findings of the engineering study conducted by the town.
Coun. Donna Orsatti says the intersection is an area of concern for many residents and has previously requested a four-way stop or set of lights, which went to the school and traffic safety committee for review.
"Each request looks at the concerns, reviews traffic counts, police accident incidents to determine the best solution; unfortunately, this did not meet the criteria for lights or four-way stop at this time. However, brush was cut back for more visibility and the 7th Line is scheduled for widening, walkways, and improvements from the 20th to St John’s Road," she said.
Orsatti said the road widening was scheduled for 2021, but is pending details of the Orbit's final design for development from the 6th Line to the 7th Line, which may change or delay the road design to ensure the design and traffic flow meets the needs of the area's growth.
"At that time, this intersection will be reviewed again and I hope the necessary intersection controls will be installed to address the safety concerns of residents," said Orsatti.
— With files from Miriam King
