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Traffic signal changes given green light by council

Jul 17, 2017 | 8:31 PM

Drivers may notice some differences to their commute later this year, as traffic control at two intersections is set to change.

A motion regarding the removal of street lights at Central Avenue and 11th Street and the installation of a set at Sixth Avenue W. and 28th Street sparked debate among city council members at their Monday meeting. 

A recent transportation study showed two intersections — Sixth Avenue West and 28th Street and Central Avenue and 22nd Street — could benefit from lights. It was decided Sixth Ave. W  had seen plenty of growth and would benefit more from signals. A report from administration explained a stop sign would suffice for now at the intersection by Kinsmen Park and downtown.

But not everyone was ready to give the proposal a green light.

“I am dead set against increasing the sets of lights in our city,” Mayor Greg Dionne said. “As you all know, a city of our size has an average of 30 street lights. We have 66. When are we going to stop?”

Prince Albert has a high per capita count of street lights, and a plan intended to reduce the number of signals proposes one set should come down before another goes up. A downtown location, close to city hall, was chosen.

“Why would we use the labour to remove traffic lights that currently exist at Central Avenue and 11th Street?” Coun. Terra Lennox-Zepp asked, not seeing a need to relocate the downtown signals. She added that several citizens had reached out and advised against their removal.

Adding lights to intersections was not the best option for Coun. Evert Botha. He suggested the city could “probably be a little bit more creative and come up with alternative options where we are not spending sixty or seventy-thousand dollars installing lights that we may or may not need.”

Both Coun. Ted Zurakowski and Coun. Dennis Ogrodnick, however, were on board with the idea of lights at Sixth Avenue West and 28th Street.

“That will give traffic that gets lined up quite often the ability to cross safely without somebody jumping out of their vehicle and pushing the cross walk. I have seen that happen,” Ogrodnick said, adding it would make the crossing at Fourth Avenue and 28th Street safer too.

This was a benefit for Zurakowski, given the high volume of children and seniors who frequent the schools and community centre in the area.

Despite the opposition, the motion was carried. A further report about the removal of traffic signals downtown is to be provided at a later date.

 

tyler.marr@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @JournoMarr