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Cars not obeying crosswalk signal prompts proposal to swap orange lights with red

Vehicles don't seem to be complying with the crosswalk installed at the Hamilton Drain Trail in 2019, which has caused council to ask for a redesign with stronger controls
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The crosswalk on Hurontario Street at the Hamilton Drain Trail is now complete. Erika Engel/CollingwoodToday

Multiple complaints about a pedestrian crossing on Hurontario Street have prompted town council and staff to work on a new plan to convert the crosswalk to a different style. 

During a meeting in February 2021, council told staff to review the existing crosswalk light system and look into replacing it with a more traditional set of lights. 

First installed in 2019, the crosswalk at the Hamilton Drain Trail is Collingwood Collegiate Institute, St. Mary's Catholic School, and Elementary School Catholic Notre-Dame-De-La-Huronie. It is north of the Poplar Sideroad/Hurontario Street intersection.

There’s a button on each side of the crossing that a pedestrian can press to activate lights over the road. 

The rules require drivers and cyclists to stop on the marked yield bar when the lights are flashing to allow pedestrians to cross the entire width of the road. 

The design of the crosswalk was taken from the Ontario Traffic Manual as the prescribed treatment for the particular road and area. 

However, anecdotal evidence and in-person study of the location shows vehicles don’t tend to follow the rules at this crosswalk. 

A staff report going to council’s development and operations committee on Monday, Sept. 13, noted a consultant who watched the crosswalk for a total of 11 hours. 

The consultant reported vehicles complied with the rules a little more than 50 per cent of the time. Out of 264 crossings, 47 per cent of the time a vehicle travelling in one direction or vehicles travelling both directions did not comply with all the rules of the crosswalk. 

Staff are proposing what is called a mid-block pedestrian signal, which is two red-yellow-green traffic lights on each side of the road activated by buttons pushed by pedestrians. 

The new lights can be put on the existing arms, but the retrofit would require new pavement markings, new underground wiring (can use the existing ducts), and new buttons. 

Staff estimated it will cost about $65,000 to change the crosswalk, plus about $10,000 for engineering work. 

The development and operations committee is scheduled to vote on the matter at the Sept. 13 meeting, with council having the final say at its Sept. 27 meeting. 


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Erika Engel

About the Author: Erika Engel

Erika regularly covers all things news in Collingwood as a reporter and editor. She has 15 years of experience as a local journalist
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