Capilano Road residents raise alarm over high-crash location

Neighbours in the 4100 to 4300 blocks of North Vancouver’s Capilano Road are calling on the district to slow traffic in the area, saying there have been too many close calls with vehicles careening out of control on to sidewalks, into their hedges and through their front yards.

Local resident Rob Greene said the problem centres on an area of Capilano Road’s S-bend curve, where drivers tend to pick up speed coming down the hill, but sometimes end up losing control, especially in heavy rain or snow.

During the last snowstorm on Jan. 17, Greene was out with another neighbour shovelling driveways when a Range Rover spun out of control on the curve and “came very close to hitting us,” he said. The vehicle didn’t have snow tires, and ended up in a neighbour’s hedge, he said.

Sometimes cars spin out of control and have ended up sliding down the sidewalk, behind a concrete barrier meant to protect pedestrians, he said.

“Our driveway has been hit a bunch of times,” neighbour Vera Gibson told District of North Vancouver council during the public input period on Jan. 22. “It’s getting to the point where it feels really unsafe.”

Ralph Ferens, who lives in the 4100 block, said he’s seen about a dozen accidents on that stretch of Capilano Road.

"They smash into the concrete barriers,” he said. “They have even bounced across the street.”

Ferens said after a sidewalk was added to the west side of Capilano Road several years ago, it meant more pedestrians were regularly placed in harm’s way, including students walking to school at Handsworth. In one case, a car ended up on top of the concrete barrier when students were just getting out of school, he said.

“The last few times there have been people almost hit.”

Ferens said neighbours have been raising the alarm on the issue for more than a year but have yet to see any action.

One suggestion from residents is to install a flashing sign before the S-bend on Capilano Road that shows drivers their speed and warns them to slow down.

But neighbours say they’d be happy to see any reasonable actions that could slow vehicles down.

Mayor Mike Little told residents at the council meeting the district usually prioritizes projects based on crash statistics from ICBC. But he added staff can also review problem areas based on anecdotal evidence.

Council made no commitment to address concerns expressed about this stretch of road.

According to ICBC statistics, there were 10 crashes in the area between 2018 and 2022 (the most recent information available).