Two students are concerned about a dangerous game of “no traffic light” at the Mitford School crossing.
“Cars go straight through the crossing all the time – it is dangerous,” said Kirsten Tannas, Grade 6 Mitford student and Cochrane resident.
Tannas and her friend Kenzie Cron, both 11, voiced their concerns about the Mitford School crossing earlier this year, in a letter to town hall asking Mayor Ivan Brooker for a change.
“Last year, we were safety patrollers and we frequently witnessed cars going through the crosswalk on Quigley Drive in front of the school. This was in spite of the crossing patrol and crosswalk lights. While peace officers were sometimes there, they were not always there … Mayor Brooker, we think that the way to improve the safety at this crossing is to put a proper traffic light there,” Tannas and Cron stated in the email.
There are three kindergarten to Grade 8 schools – Mitford School, Cochrane Christian Academy, and École Notre-Dame Des Vallees – in a one-kilometre stretch along Quigley Drive. More than 850 students attend those schools.
According to the Cochrane RCMP, there were three major collisions in the past year on Quigley Drive near the schools including a two-vehicle collision, a rear-ended collision, and a pedestrian struck by a vehicle.
“Over the last few years, there has been a lot of effort put into making this area safer. We added a second crossing light between the two schools and have increased RCMP and bylaw presence,” Brooker replied to the email.
“As far as a signalized intersection goes there is very particular guidelines for when lights are warranted. I have sent your letter to our administration for comment, but I can tell you already that it is highly unlikely that this intersection would ever meet those requirements.”
The install a traffic light the intersection must first meet certain minimum criteria specified by the Canadian Traffic Signal Procedure.
Tannas and Cron both shared stories about themselves and their friends having to walk with their younger siblings because their parents do not trust the safety of the current crossing.
“Both Kenzie and I have witnessed lots of other times that cars have ignored the crosswalk light and put kids in danger,” the girls wrote in the email.
“Since the town will not put in a traffic light at the crosswalk, what actions will the town do to make this crosswalk safer for the kids that use it?”
Brooker responded that he “appreciated the difference of opinion” and that the town was “doing everything that we can to keep this area safe, no differently than we do in many school zones all around town.”
“I think it’s great the kids were taking the initiative to ask the questions but the intersection isn’t even remotely close to warrant traffic lights,” Brooker told the Eagle.
“We have very specific protocols to warrant a set of lights and it is just not there, though through other means we continue to work on safety issues.”
Tannas and Cron said they were “not happy” with the mayor’s response and will continue to advocate for improved safety measure at the crossing.
“We stopped trying to communicate with the mayor because it felt like he is shutting us down – people don’t care about pedestrians there,” Tannas said.
The mayor explained that he is not dismissing the girls’ comments.
“It doesn’t surprise me that they don’t like my answer but the reality is regardless of their opinion, we absolutely need to address safety but we can’t put a set of lights where everyone asks for one,” Brooker said.
“I get asked a ton of questions and not everyone likes the responses. I am trying to make sure people understand the processes and I don’t expect everyone to agree with me on everything.”
FACTBOX
Criteria to install a traffic signal;
An engineering study of the intersection must be performed – the traffic engineer then looks at things such as traffic volumes, pedestrian volumes, posted speed, collision history, road alignment (visibility), etc.
The engineer's investigation may provide alternate solutions if the study does not warrant a traffic signal, i.e. a stop sign.
If the intersection does warrant a traffic signal, it may be installed if funding permits.
