Road safety tops community concerns

 In News

The speed limit on Concession Road 3, between Creemore and the 6/7 Sideroad, has been reduced to 50 km/h in response to pleas for traffic calming from area residents.
Dan Perrault said township staff has confirmed the urban boundary of Creemore according to the Township Official Plan is the north side of the road allowance of 6/7 Sideroad at the 3rd Line. He said, in accordance with the Highway Traffic Act Section 128, the rate of speed within a built-up (urban) area is 50 km/h, so there is no need for a by-law in this instance.
Councillor Thom Paterson, who helped find the solution, said the 90-degree bend in the road poses a real problem at high speeds, especially in winter.
Over the past few years, signage and road paint were used to try to deter speeders but that didn’t work, said Paterson.
Then they started to see a change in use with young families moving in on the private road that is an extension of 6/7 Sideroad.
It is not an absolute, said Paterson, that the speed limit drops at the settlement boundary but in this case it made sense as more people were complaining about speed.
“These people live in the settlement area and they should be treated the same,” he said.
Paterson said he has been talking with staff about refurbishing the trail along that stretch of road, and he wants to see signage to encourage motorists to slow down.
He hopes the same settlement area principle can be applied to the Fairgrounds Road, between County Roads 9 and 91.
“They are using the roads differently than how they were designed and what the posted speed limit is,” said Paterson, adding that there are more driveways accessing the road and it is no longer a country road connecting to Stayner.
Paterson’s July 27 motion to change the speed limit on the portion of road to 60 km/h was deferred, along with other council members motions regarding speed on Concession 6 and 12/13 Sideroad Sunnidale.
He wants these “hot spots” addressed now, rather than waiting for the full completion and analysis of the Comprehensive Traffic Management Study currently underway.
“We can still do something, and measure it to see if reducing speed works,” said Paterson. “Should it be applied elsewhere in Clearview?”
He intends to bring the issue back to the council table.
Paterson said road safety is one of the top concerns of resident across the province and Clearview is no different.
“Speed is a big concern,” he said, adding that complaints come from a wide cross section of the community, including farmers who are using the road.
The July 27 council agenda includes 68 pieces of correspondence from residents, many of whom are concerned about road safety, primarily due to speed and the proposal to allow ATVs on all municipal roads.
Paterson said reducing speeds is a “no-brainer” if ATVs are given full access because they are to travel 30 km/h below the posted speed limit.
Clearview Township has committed $35,000 for the Comprehensive Traffic Management Study and analysis by a traffic engineer. Council has also agreed to consider lowering speed as a result of the findings.

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