Efforts are underway to make it safer to cross the most dangerous intersection in Squamish.
Council passed a motion on Tuesday night to communicate unequivocally to the powers that be in the province the urgency of making the intersection at Highway 99 and Cleveland Avenue safer.
A letter will be sent on council’s behalf to ICBC, the provincial Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, Sea to Sky MP Pamela Goldsmith-Jones and MLA Jordan Sturdy.
Council also passed a motion for staff to look at the possibility of a pedestrian overpass in the area of the intersection.
The motions came after the Sea to Sky Highway at Cleveland Ave Traffic Operational Safety Review was presented to council by district staff.
The study, jointly funded by the district, the province and ICBC, was “long overdue,” according to Mayor Patricia Heintzman.
A total of 229 crashes occurred between 2011 and 2015 at the crossing, according to the report. Of those crashes, 98 caused injury and 131 resulted in vehicle or property damage.
Most crashes – 85 per cent – were rear-enders. The majority, 63 per cent, of the accidents occurred with vehicles heading eastbound on Cleveland Avenue.
“This has been a thorn in our side for a long time,” said Coun. Peter Kent. “The figures speak for themselves.”
The intersection has been deemed the most dangerous in Squamish since 1996.
The report recommends a variety of fixes to be introduced in the short and long term.
Though it was not recommended in the report, Blackman-Wullf said it was time to look at a pedestrian crossing, a point he has been raising for two years.
“Let’s at least have that option on the table,” he said.
The provincial government is responsible for the intersection. Several councillors argued the need for the province to step up quickly and with significant funds to protect drivers, pedestrians and cyclists.
Coun. Susan Chapelle praised the report recommendations that would aid drivers, but said the recommendations for those not in cars “suck.”
“The long-term recommendations are the ones that are actually most important,” she said. “The most vulnerable users at this intersection are being ignored.”
Coun. Doug Race said lowering the speed limit would be a fairly simple fix along the highway. “Lions Bay has it. It is 60 kilometres just south of there,” he said, adding before the 2010 Olympic Games the district requested the speed limit be lowered going past Squamish, but the request was denied.
“It is not the whole solution, it is just 10 kilometres, but that would contribute to the safety at that intersection,” Race said.
Eric Andersen, who lives in the Valleycliffe area, said in an email to The Squamish Chief that the study missed a key opportunity to include travel issues for residents in Valleycliffe and Hospital Hill. “They miss safety issues, including the highway crossing safety issue,” he said.
These residents also lack a safe, convenient route from the west side of the Pemberton underpass to the schools and the shopping centre, he added.Short-term fixes include optimizing traffic signal timing and adding additional signage.
Changes that will be tackled five years from now or later include constructing an eastbound-southbound right-turn acceleration lane, adding additional north-south lanes along the highway, providing an off-street bike lane along the southwest side of the highway and improving bike paths around the intersection.
