PUSLINCH - Council has approved the need for additional measures such as enhanced OPP enforcement and electronic speed enforcement at the Brock Road crosswalk in Aberfoyle.
At Wednesday’s meeting, council supported the implementation of the community safety zone and speed enforcement along the Aberfoyle Corridor.
CAO Glenn Schwendinger submitted his Brock Road crosswalk report that indicates a number of concerns regarding the location has been passed along the township staff, such as individuals using the crosswalk or walking in the area when there’s construction happening; traffic coming from Old Brock Road turning onto Brock Road; and traffic on Brock Road.
A number of improvements have been made along Old Brock Road and on Brock Road in Aberfoyle to provide a safe crossing point of Brock Road for children coming to and from the school. These improvements include sidewalks, signs, pavement markings, and traffic lights.
The township also instituted a crossing guard at this location for the start of the school year in the fall of 2021.
Township staff met with Wellington County representatives on Dec. 16 because Brock Road is a Wellington County Road and as such they are the road authority. During the Dec. 16 meeting, county staff and township staff came into the agreement of implementing additional measures such as:
- Adjusted the timing at the lights so that both the amber and red are longer than standard
- Adjusted the “walk” time to be longer than standard
- Ladder markings installed across the crosswalk at Old Brock Road
- Two “no right turn on red” signs posted at the intersection coming off of Old Brock Road
- School zone signs posted on Wellington Road 46, one by the community centre and one
- near Cockburn Street
- Two digital radar speed signs, one near Wellington Road 34 and one near the Aberfoyle Mill
- Oversized 50 kilometre speed limit signs have been installed from Wellington Road 34 to Gilmour Road
“I’m glad the county is helping us with the issues we have at the crosswalk location,” said Coun. John Sepulis.
“I do have a request to have another motion and that is that the county consider this location a community safety zone. Once it has been created, I want the implementation of a photo radar to be discussed as an option for speeding concerns. We have a lot of speeding cars there, and all it takes is one speeding car who’s not careful enough to cause an unnecessary accident.”
Mayor James Seeley explained to council that the county has already received a report at the county roads committee meeting on Jan. 11, recommending to implement a community safety zone on the section of Brock Road from Wellington Road 34 to Gilmour Road. As such, there was no need to implement Sepulis’ first half of his motion.
Seeley also noted that if the community safety zone was approved, it would enable the county to adopt a by-law to increase fines in that location, and enable Sepulis' suggestion of electronic speed enforcement like photo radars.
The community safety zone will be approved at the next county's committee of the whole meeting.
