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Traffic calming causes stress

Survey results question city policy

By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express

The fight continues for Oshawa residents who have repeatedly called on council and city hall to remove traffic calming measures that they see as dangerous money pits.

The traffic calming islands on Somerville Street, between Taunton Road and Rossland Road have been under the microscope since June of this year when residents appeared before council to call for their removal.

At the time, residents informed councillors that the islands were not only restricting the entryways into the nearby driveways, but they were also repeatedly the cause for collisions with snowplows during the winter months, causing damage to nearby boulevards as large vehicles are forced to make wide turns to maneuver around them. They also claimed the islands were a danger to cyclists.

To gauge the opinions of other residents in the area, city staff sent out a survey in August. In all, a recent city report shows of the 142 surveys sent out, 79 per cent of respondents called for the removal of the traffic islands, while 13 per cent wanted them left alone.

Despite the majority of survey respondents voting in favour of the removal, city staff noted there is “insufficient community support” and recommended to council that the islands be left as is, pointing to the city’s traffic guide that states 60 per cent of those who were given surveys needed to respond in order for the city to recommend action. In this case, despite the strong number of people in favour of the removal, only 63 of the 142 surveys sent out were completed, a response rate of 44 per cent.

This did not sit well with resident Patricia Garland, who turned out at a recent committee meeting to say that she was “disturbed” by the city’s findings. In fact, she informed councillors that despite living directly in front of one of these islands, she didn’t receive a survey.

She also learned from her neighbours that the surveys were delivered as a flyer, and not in addressed envelopes, which may have led some people to throw it in the trash by accident.

“I’m sure there’s a lot of people who did not get one and didn’t know what it was and chucked it out like most people,” she said.

The islands, installed in 2002, include four pairs of raised medians that sit north and south of the intersections of Jones Avenue, Glenwood Avenue, Switzer Drive and Sunset Drive. The city estimates the cost to remove the islands at approximately $21,000.

In the report, staff note that the response rate, which is “significantly” lower than the required minimum, could have been impacted by the time in which the survey was sent out, stating that residents might have been away on summer vacation.

“If community interest remains high, the survey could be conducted again in the fall,” the report states.

It is also not the first time the city has been in hot water over an issue with timing. Last spring, when attempting to gauge interest from potential developers for the Oshawa marina, the city issued a request for expressions of interest that fell flat, later being criticized by an industry consultant who noted that the city sent out the request at the worst possible time for marina operators. This was followed up by a $25,000 marketing campaign.

Following the strong words from Garland, the issue was referred back to staff following a motion from Mayor John Henry, who requested for staff to return in the coming weeks with further options related to the islands, along with options for other traffic calming measures on the street.

To deal with the issue, before councillors at the Community Services meeting tomorrow (Oct. 5) will be a motion to consider repeating the initial survey.

 

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