The intersection at Highway 22 and Sunset Boulevard has been causing some consternation for Cochrane motorists.
Alberta Transportation received a few complaints after drivers were ticketed for failing to stop when turning right off the highway. Ticketed drivers were treating the intersection as a yield because the right-hand turn is separated from regular highway traffic by a lane and an island.
Up until recently, that lane did not have individual signage, which, according to Cpl. Troy Savinkoff with the Cochrane RCMP, means it is controlled by the traffic light. When turning right off a red light, drivers are required by law to come to a complete stop.
“Compliance was so bad there that if you actually did stop you were probably going to get rear-ended,” said Savinkoff.
Fred Lee, with Albert Transportation, said after the province and the town received complaints about the intersection a review was done and a yield sign was installed. There are also plans to widen the island.
Savinkoff says that is a better way to control the intersection because the traffic flow is relatively simple. Drivers only have to worry about traffic turning left off the highway.
As for tickets that were issued before the yield sign was installed, Savinkoff said the officers writing the tickets interpreted the law correctly.
