The parent of a Warminster Elementary School student is petitioning for a traffic light at the intersection of Highway 12 and Warminster Sideroad to make it safer for students who walk to school and others who need to cross the busy highway.
Hillary Handy, whose daughter is in junior kindergarten, noticed during the first week of school that drivers often ignored the flashing light pedestrian crossing that is currently in place. That crossing is activated when a person pushes a button.
“Other parents have told me it’s been a problem for years,” Handy said. “So, I contacted our Ward 2 (Oro-Medonte Township) councillor who told me to start an online petition and try to advocate for support.”
Because Waminster is divided by Highway 12, residents must cross the busy road to get to the post office, the LCBO, a convenience store, and the school. That makes the installation of a traffic light beneficial for the safety of all residents, Handy says.
“It’s an accident waiting to happen,” she said. “I don’t know why we have to wait for an accident to happen to make these changes that are so easy to make.”
Handy says she has contacted Simcoe North MPP Jill Dunlop to advocate for change.
“She suggested that we should keep the petition going,” Handy said. “She said she would investigate how to make it happen.”
In a written statement, Dunlop confirmed she's aware of the issue.
“The government has continued to work with the community to upgrade the crosswalk to a pedestrian signal and the addition of police presence for monitoring,” she said.
“I have had productive discussions with the municipality for which this falls within the jurisdiction of, and I will continue to work with our local partners to ensure the safety of our community," Dunlop added.
Handy says she appreciates the community support; more than 2,100 people have signed the petition in just a few days. She feels the community is close to making it happen.
But not everyone is in favour of a light. Tony Brown, a Warminster resident, says he is against the plan.
“The school policy is the students aren’t allowed to cross the highway,” he explained. “I’m on the highway and I installed a camera system at the lights. On average, six to ten people a day cross there.”
Brown says the lights would actually create more accidents because of the sudden stops and turns.
“This is coming from a guy who can’t even pull out of his driveway without being hit because I live right on the corner by the gas station,” he said. “It sounds like a good idea to add the lights, but it would cause more issues than not.”
The petition says otherwise.
"A traffic light would also force motorists to slow down with ample time, approaching the intersection when travelling 80 km/h, then 60 km/h into Warminster. It is not designated as 40 km/h as a school zone along the highway," the petition states.
"The visual cue of the lights would prompt people to slow down quicker and make the appropriate stop when the lights change. The obvious visibility of a stop light would alleviate many issues with transportation and pedestrian safety," notes the petition.
"The flashing pedestrian symbol or hand symbol would also give a clear indication to children when it is indeed safe to cross, reducing the risky and potentially dangerous encounters with vehicles."
