Dear Editor:
On Aug.18, residents of the Cloverley neighbourhood were witness to yet another four hours of traffic nightmare as hundreds of vehicles were shortcutting through this residential neighbourhood. The Lower Lynn Interchange Project traffic reconfiguration has now resulted in the majority of shortcutting traffic using the streets bordering Cloverley Park, school property and the playground zone in order to access Keith Rd. The laneways are also being used despite being illegal to turn right between 3 and 6 p.m. This is a direct result of the driving apps which drivers are relying on to find shortcutting routes.
Born out of frustration, the neighbourhood once again reached a boiling point on Friday as a number of residents took it upon themselves to block vehicles from illegally accessing Keith Rd. through the lane directly adjacent to school property. This is not an isolated event, as the Cloverley area has been witness to numerous incidents such as this since 2016.
In May 2021, the City of North Vancouver removed most of the failed traffic mitigation measures that had been implemented in the area. Residents were told to wait for “City-wide data” to be collected before any new plans for safety improvements would be considered. What should also be noted is that the Cloverley area already has narrower streets and ‘traffic queuing’ that are being lauded elsewhere in the city as an attempt to prevent shortcutting. As the city’s own data will attest to, narrower streets and laneways and enforcement-based signage have not alleviated traffic volume in the least in the Cloverley area.
In a report to Council in 2021, residents were assured that the situation would be monitored, and alternative ways to minimize traffic volume would be explored. In the more-than two years since that report, we have seen no such measures. Despite knowing about the ongoing major incidents and safety concerns in our neighbourhood, the city has chosen to focus its attention elsewhere.
With the new Cloverley school on the horizon, the city needs to start implementing safety measures now that work and are equitable. It will be a challenge to work towards changing traffic patterns that have been established over the past seven years. The residents of the area along with the future students and staff of the new Cloverley school deserve a safe, inclusive and healthy neighbourhood.
Peter Kennedy
North Vancouver
