A tragic accident is only a matter of time, say residents, unless something is done to reduce speeding on East 29th Street.
Gwen Elliott led a delegation of residents to City of North Vancouver council Sept. 12. Over the past four years, Elliott said, "I've watched traffic increase in both volume and speed to an alarming level."
She thanked city engineering staff for repainting the 50-km/h speed limit on the road surface, but said it hadn't really deterred speeding. Temporary flashing signs and RCMP enforcement had helped, she said, but speeds returned to normal after they were removed.
"We understand that East 29th is a muchused thoroughfare between Lonsdale and Lynn Valley," Elliott told councillors. "We are not expecting that the traffic disappear. However, what we do expect is a level of safety."
Elliott said it is extremely difficult to park in her driveway or even safely cross the street given the speeding traffic and poor visibility. Drivers who do slow for pedestrians, she said, are frequently abused by other drivers, who swerve around them at speed.
She and her neighbours had witnessed several near misses, Elliott said, and gestured towards a boy in the council audience.
"We had a terrifying incident with this little boy . . . Christian was coming out of his house and we all waved at each other . . . he just ran right out into the street and the car coming up didn't see him and she slammed on the brakes. He burst into tears. I screamed. It was terrifying.
"I know this could happen on any street but I'm not exaggerating when I say that 80 per cent of the cars who travel on that street would not have been able to stop in time."
Elliott asked for physical changes to the road, such as a traffic light, medians or corner bulges.
Coun. Mary Trentadue said she could support a pedestrian-controlled traffic light, but asked staff what they thought the most effective options were.
Assistant city engineer Dragana Mitic said corner bulges to the sidewalk were proven to reduce speeding and made crossing easier.
"I don't want to be here when something happens," said Coun. Rod Clark.
"East 29th is a four-lane designated major arterial road. I'm telling you it's become a secondary highway . . . It's not acceptable to turn a blind eye to this situation."
Clark said a stop sign would be a fast way to curb speeding and provide a safe crossing. He recalled opposing a stop sign on East 19th, but was later convinced it was effective.
Clark also called for an increased RCMP presence and liberal use of vehicle impounding.
Coun. Bob Fearnley worried that a stop sign would create a false sense of security and said city staff should study the street more closely.
"Of course we want to look like we're doing something," he said, "particularly in a election year. What's going to happen is people are just going to blow through the stop sign."
Council unanimously directed staff to look into building a traffic light and other measures, and to invite the District of North Vancouver to participate in the work.
balldritt@nsnews.com
