Recap of Ward 15 Town Hall: SAFE STEETS
Ward 15 Town Hall: Safe Streets
April 18, 2024
Waterdown Library / Flamborough Seniors’ Centre
7:04pm - Welcome Messages
Councillor McMeekin welcomes the group of approximately 100 residents. He introduces members of the Ward 15 office, as well as Carolyn Ryall, Director, Transportation Division along with Mike Field, Manager, Transportation Operations.
In his remarks, Councillor McMeekin informs the group that approximately half of all resident calls / emails to the Ward 15 office relate to safe streets. The Office maintains a very high response rate, returning calls and emails with well over 96% effectiveness, within 24 hours. Further, Ted commits to follow-up on all matters raised during the Town Hall.
7:09pm - Carolyn and Mike begin their presentation
7:55pm - Carolyn and Mike end their presentation
The formal presentation from Carolyn and Mike ends. Councillor McMeekin thanks them for their thorough talk and invites the audience to take a break, have a coffee / snack, and suggests everyone return to their seats for the Q&A period in approximately 10 minutes.
8:06pm – the group returns and the Q&A with Carolyn, Mike and Ted begins
Q: Why doesn’t the City put speed bumps on highway 5/Dundas Street?
A: The City will not put speed cushions on arterial or major roads, due to higher volumes of traffic and speeds. It is not a safe tool to use on that type of road, nor is it appropriate for the vehicle types that use that type of road. This goes for both for both Dundas and Parkside Dr.
Q: We are a community of signs, but what about enforcement of the rules, particularly in rural areas of Flamborough. Speed cushions seem like they would be the best tool.
A: The City is currently investigating ways to calm traffic that would be more appropriate for rural roadways. At present, a pilot is taking place in Ward 11 on this very issue. Typically, rural roads have higher speed limits, and the pilot project is assessing if any reconfiguration would be helpful. Further, Hamilton Police Service is a partner with the Transportation Division, where staff will request targeted enforcement in areas noted for excessive speeding, when received from residents and Ward offices. Also, our department works with the provincial Ministry of Transportation as it relates to collision data. Finally, when it comes to speeding, the City will deploy additional tools such as automated speed enforcement (ASE) and/or red-light cameras to help with the enforcement of posted speeds.
Q: There is a concerning issue near Safari Road as it relates to Google Maps and Garmin mapping software. In that area, the City has an approved route to manage traffic flow. However, that route is being co-opted by the mapping software on people’s phones and navigation systems. Some streets are marked as restricted by these online tools, while others are not. It is causing main routes to not show up and to not be prioritized by navigation systems. Traffic is being diverting through small communities on far less appropriate roads.
A: Yes, the City is aware of this issue and is working with mapping providers to address the issue.
Q: Can you please clarify something about signs and truck routes. Does a truck route define the number of axels or the weight of a truck? Also, which department manages and monitors a truck route. When it comes to the axel and/or weight enforcement, who do we contact?
A: The Transportation division is a partner in the consultation of defining truck routes in Hamilton, with other divisions throughout the City. Truck route signs went in 2023 and monitoring of the truck route is ongoing. We don’t actively monitor truck axels per se, but noise levels and the routing were both things that City Council has asked the department to track. Further, the City’s Engineering department is responsible for the definitions around weight tolerance on routes. It is only the Hamilton Police Service that will pull over trucks. Our department connects with HPS for targeted enforcement when needed.
Q: Would you approve a truck route with schools on it?
A: Again, the Transportation department consults on the truck route plans, it doesn’t make the final approvals. The Planning department would be the group that makes the choice of exsactly which street is defined as part of a truck route. If trucks need specific direction or guidance on any street, then signage would be appropriately deployed.
Q: I believe an illegal trucking / dumping operation is taking place in my area. I also believe they removed municipal signs. The City was quick to get them back up, thank you. But, there is still rampant trucking taking place at all hours. It seems to me that enforcement is needed and I worry the streets will degrade much faster than they should as a result.
A: Thanks for pointing this out. The Transportation team and Councillor McMeekin are happy to intake this matter and check on both the zoning of the specific area, and will refer the matter for bylaw enforcement. Please send the specific details (location, timing, your general observations) via email to trafficops@hamilton.ca so we can work to address the matter.
Q: I come into Waterdown daily, and I don’t find traffic bad in the morning. However, rural roads always seem to be an issue. There have been three fatalities in rural Flamborough in the last little while. Slippery roads may be an issue. I don’t know how much not speeding was a factor. Where concessions cross Highway 6, blind spots are common. These issues should be addressed before another fatality.
A: Your concerns are noted. Traffic safety is critical. Our team will be glad to review the areas of concern. Please direct us to any location in which you question the safety of the public. We can be reached at trafficops@hamilton.ca.
Q: I would like to talk about the two Red Light Cameras on Dundas Street. They are at the intersections of Hamilton and Mill Streets. However, both of these locations are in the core, traffic is at a single lane or close to it, and then don’t seem to really improve anything. Meanwhile, the intersection of Riley and Highway 5 would be a great location for a camera of this nature. So many people run the red light at Riley St., as it is at the top of the hill. Local residents know not to proceed left immediately after the light turns green, as they risk getting hurt by a car barreling through the intersection to run the red. With a new property development coming into the area, it will add to the issue at the intersection. It’s a dangerous situation for pedestrians and children, as there is a school in the area.
A: There is a screening tool deployed to make decisions about Red Light Cameras. The choices for intersections would have been made using clear metrics. Further, to your point about a new development, traffic impact studies would be part of any building permit approval, so that matter would have been researched already. Also, it should be noted that the purpose of a Red Light Camera isn’t to stop people from running red lights per se, though that is certainly a by-product of the effort. The primary purpose of a read light camera is to reduce / eliminate right angle or T-bone collisions, which are the most severe type of collisions, resulting in the most injury. As Riley St. ends at Dundas and drivers must turn right or left, it does not form through intersection. That is likely why it didn’t meet the classifications under the screening tool.
Q: On Parkside Drive, by railroad tracks, there is water leaking onto the road. It seems like it could be from Grindstone Creek. CP Rail was doing work last week and I stopped to talk to them. They said the matter is not their issue and they pointed to the culvert on the side of the road as the culprit.
A: This is a matter to be reviewed by Roadway Maintenance, and we’ll be happy to get it resolved. Any roadway safety matter would be a high priority for review and implementation, as required.
Q: The new lights on Mountain Brow and Mill St. have been a big help. Motorists were always stuck at that intersection, as it was very dangerous. I know some in the community don’t feel that these lights were needed, but I am very appreciative of their addition. That intersection was unsafe, and the lights are a big help.
A: Thank you for that feedback.
Q: It looks like a stop light is coming to Carlisle Road and Centre Rd. Is that the case?
A: Yes, the City’s capital budget has the funding allocated to install a new light at that intersection.
Q: How is a truck route determined? Once a series of roads are designated a truck route, do those same roads then get prioritized for repair work, as a result of truck traffic?
A: Truck routes require many steps before being designated. Traffic engineering studies, and public consultations are certainly part of that process. In addition, the structural integrity of specific roads and bridges would be analysed as well. Assessing the condition of the road will also be done. Form a broad view perspective and in general terms, roads are planned 5-10 years out for capital investment planning purposes.
Q: When the Waterdown library was built, they shrubs out front impeded sights lines as one exited the driveway. Those were removed, but now the HSR bus stop also impacts sight lines leaving the library.
A: Sight lines should be a factor when positioning HSR bus stops, but we are happy to work with HSR, or the Forestry department (if necessary), to identify and improve sight lines if that is required.
Q: Work is being done to widen Waterdown Rd, between Mountain Brow and Highway 403. However, traveling north, those (eventual) three or four lanes will still reduce back done to one lane after the lights at Mountain Brow. So, traveling around Smokey Hollow waterfall will still be bottlenecked, as the single lane persists past Smokey Hallow and under the CN Rail bridge.
A: A couple of things to note here. First of all, if the City of Hamilton were to do additional work in this area, it would be traveling up Mountain Brow Road into the Mountainview Heights area. That road is already wider after Flanders. But this has not been determined as of yet. Further, there is a new light in this area and along with adjustments to the timing of that light, it will help manage the flow of traffic into town along Mill St. Collaboration with CN would be necessary to do any work related to the CN bridge, as trains (and the corresponding infrastructure) are federally regulated.
Q: I’ve had issues with potholes, some have even damaged my vehicle. I called the City to fix them and to their credit they did. However, when they were on site, they didn’t bother to fix other potholes near by. I asked a staff member why that was, and I was told that the system on board their work vehicle tells them the specific locations of holes to repair. If potholes are not on their system, then they are not repaired. This seems so odd. Can we not repair all the potholes when a crew deploys to a specific area?
A: I realize this may seem confusing to the casual observer, but in short, the Transportation Department follows a standard of care related to filling potholes. That standard is a provincially defined guideline, based on size, depth, and the overall risk to public safety posed by a specific pothole. When a team deploys to fix a roadway, some potholes will meet that standard, while others, even those nearby, will not. We target the most severe instances in the moment but will return to the area if the need presents itself. We use a risk and liability perspective, as we move about the City filling hundreds of thousands of holes on an annual basis.
Q: Regarding the Waterdown bypass, have there been any conversations with CP Rail about the Bypass possibly going under or over the train tracks that cross Parkside Dr?
A: The construction of the Waterdown Bypass is not a project managed by the Transportation Department, so I cannot directly address that question. However, I am happy to bring that to the Planning and Engineering departments, who can speak to it directly. As well, it needs to be noted that railways are the jurisdiction of the federal government, so any work of this nature would require their authorization / partnership.
Q: I would like to ask about Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE) cameras and their purpose. As you noted earlier in the night, digital displays on roadways which show a driver’s speed are effective in reducing speeding. So, my concern is the ASE cameras are too intrusive, as we suffer the risk government overreach and infringement of privacy by collecting data on us for no increased benefit of speed reduction.
A: The Transportation team needs to deploy a variety of tools in order to deter speeding across the City. In short, police simply cannot be everywhere at all times and City Council specifically requested permission from the Ministry of Transportation to use ASE cameras within municipal boundaries. They are especially helpful to deploy not only in areas noted for high(er) rates of speeding, but also in community safety zones, such as those nears schools, to help protect pedestrians and children. The data collected by the cameras is maintain by the province, not the City of Hamilton. If you have concerns about data use and privacy, those should be shared with your MPP, as the City does no have access to the data.
Q: How quickly do tickets from ASE cameras get mailed out? If they are supposed to dissuade speeding, one would imagine that there should be a quick turnaround time to ensure the feedback is reaching the offending driver.
A: All matters related to tickets stemming from ASE cameras are managed by the province of Ontario through a joint processing centre in Toronto. It is effectively a court process, in which the registered license plate holder will receive the ticket after the data is processed. The rule is that tickets should be mailed within 30 days to the address of the license plate holder.
9:03pm – Meeting concludes
Councillor McMeekin thanks everyone in attendance for making time for the meeting and for their questions and feedback. Ted then thanked Carolyn and Mike for their efforts within the City, for their help tonight, and for hearing out the concerns and comments from the many Ward 15 residents who came to the Town Hall.
