Barrie councillors might turn city staff into street investigators.
Sitting as general committee tonight, councillors could instruct staff to investigate all-way stops, three-way stops, parking restrictions, crosswalks, stoplights and speed reductions on city streets, and also change a few parking bylaws.
Most of these actions, items for discussion they’re called, are sponsored by the ward councillors.
First, Coun. Clare Riepma wants staff to investigate the feasibility of an all-way stop, or other pedestrian safety measures, at the intersection of Codrington and Rodney streets.
Codrington is a busy street, as it’s parallel to Blake Street and leads to downtown Barrie. Many children walk to school from the residential community, particularly from the north, and school children have to cross the street to get to and return from Codrington Public School.
“There are no four-way stop intersections in the area and Codrington Street is straight, thereby encouraging speeding traffic,” Riepma said. “We are trying to encourage children to walk to school, but parents are concerned about the safety of their children crossing Codrington Street at this location.”
Next, again by Riepma, is to investigate the feasibility of implementing ‘No Parking Anytime’ on all or part of Sydenham Wells, and on both sides of Penetanguishene Road from Georgian Drive to Blake Street.
One side of Sydenham Wells is street townhouses and the other side is three storey condos. A project built for student housing is also located on the east side of Sydenham Wells, but has access from Penetanguishene Road.
Riepma says a significant number of cars are usually parked in the curve on Sydenham Wells, adjacent to the student residence. Parking is currently permitted on both sides of Sydenham Wells and there is great concern about speeding cars, he said.
“There are also a large number of children in the area and safety is an increasing concern,” Riepma said. “For a number of years, temporary speed bumps have been located on the street. A safety review of Sydenham Wells is warranted in order to determine what the best solution is.”
Related to Sydenham Wells is the parking that occurs on the shoulder of Penetanguishene Road, Riepma said. Much of this parking appears to relate to the student residence.
The Ward 1 councillor noted Penetanguishene is a rural road with narrow shoulders. In addition to the automobile parking that occurs in this area, there are often heavy trucks parked on the east shoulder of the road for extended periods of time. Since this is a heavily travelled route from Highway 400 to downtown, safety is a concern, Riepma said.
He’s also behind an investigation into the feasibility of installing a stoplight at the corner of Johnson and Grove streets.
This is a very busy intersection with many pedestrians, Riepma said, and the city has funding to install the traffic light, provided by the developer of the shopping plaza on the corner.
“As Grove is being reconstructed this year, this is an opportune time to install the infrastructure required,” he said.
Coun. Amy Courser wants staff to investigate the feasibility of a pedestrian crosswalk between Livingstone Street West and Longman Drive.
“There is no pedestrian crossing on Livingstone Street West for approximately one kilometre between Sunnidale Road and Ferndale Drive North,” the Ward 4 councillor said. “This leaves pedestrians, particularly students from Emma King Elementary School, vulnerable along this busy street.”
Coun. Craig Nixon would have staff investigate the feasibility of lowering the speed limit to 40 from 50 kilometres per hour on Lakeshore Drive between Tiffin and Mulcaster streets, as well as looking at other speed-control measures.
With parking allowed on both sides of the road, he's said there is a large number of people, mostly seniors and children, crossing the street. Reducing the speed limit will result in a safer crossing and it might also reduce engine noise from vehicles with modified mufflers, where the decibel level rises along with the rate of speed, Nixon said.
The Ward 2 councillor also wants an investigation of the feasibility of implementing a two-hour parking limit on the west side of Davidson Street, in front of Oakley Park Public School.
Coun. Gary Harvey wants the no-parking status on a section of Quance Street changed to instead allow parking.
Sometime before 2016 there was no parking on Quance within 54 metres of its intersection with Mapleton Avenue.
But residents on the east side of Quance have since been against the no parking area in front of their homes.
“This motion removes one no-parking sign and removes a no-parking area that is about eight metres long on the east side, just before the curve,” Harvey said. “No parking still remains as you approach the intersection with Mapleton.
“In recent months this has become a real issue, as the city replaced the no-parking sign three times and each time it has been removed by a resident,” he said. “This motion is to fix this matter that should’ve been completed in 2016.”
Courser has also asked that staff investigate the feasibility of installing a three-way stop at the corner of Anne Street North and Hanmer Street West.
“Multiple residents are reporting that line of sight and safety issues are a concern at this intersection,” she said.
Harvey is also asking that city staff make the south side of Downing Crescent, from numbers one to eight, inclusive of the curve in the road east of No. 8, a no-parking zone.
“The past few summers parking on Downing Crescent has become a major issue along the north end of the crescent due to people parking on both sides of the street and blocking driveways in the evenings, when the soccer and baseball diamonds are being used,” he said. “Bylaw (enforcement) has attended on several occasions, however the issue continues to persist.
“Only permitting parking on one side of the street where there are no driveways will resolve the issue," the councillor added.
And councillors will look at no parking on Stanley Street’s south side from a point 67 metres west of Livia Herman Way to 40 metres farther west.
The majority of vehicles park on the north side of Stanley Street. Operational and safety concerns are in the area of the curve in the middle of Stanley Street, between Birchwood Drive and Livia Herman Way. In this area, vehicles are parking on both sides of the road causing inadequate lane widths, reducing the road to a single lane of travel with reduced sight lines.
All of these item-for-discussion motions, and the two bylaw changes, are to be considered at general committee Wednesday night and would still require final approval by city council at its Oct. 25 meeting.
