Stopping traffic
Police monitor River Ryan intersection
Police have laid several charges under the motor vehicle act thanks to motor vehicle incidents at a three-stop intersection in River Ryan.
“We have another officer out there monitoring it today (Friday),” said Sgt. Joe Farrell of the Traffic Safety Unit of the Cape Breton Regional Police Service. “We will keep providing enforcement here when necessary.”
In a story published in the Cape Breton Post Wednesday, school-crossing guard Raymond McLellan spoke out about traffic violations he was witnessing while manning the crosswalk at Emerald Street by the Union Highway Intersection. He’s worried someone is going to get hurt.
He said since a three-way stop had been implemented at the intersection in preparation for the new school year, motorists travelling on Union Highway were detouring through the lot of a private business, Spike’s Ideal Care Care Centre, to avoid the intersection and not slowing down. He was worried about people working in the garage and their customers since the motorists were not slowing down.
He also said motorists were treating the stop signs as yield signs and were not coming to a complete stop.
McLellan said he is at the crosswalk morning, at noon and again in the afternoon and says this goes on all three times of the day.
He said he witnesses the same thing happening at Sobey’s Fast Fuels garage across from the car care centre although not as often.
Sgt. Farrell said after hearing about the concerns an officer was sent out to monitor the intersection earlier in the week.
“His impression was drivers were not paying attention to the traffic signs,” he said.
As a result Farrell said officers have been monitoring the intersection.
Farrell said he spoke to the crossing guard again on Friday.
“Raymond told me he can see it improving there.”
Farrell said as far as the concerns connected with motorists using the property of Spike’s Ideal Car care as a throughway to Emerald Street to avoid the intersection, there’s not much police can do unless the owner erects ‘no throughway’ signs.
“If motorists go through there at an irate speed or if danger is an issue then we can step in.”
McLellan said he has noticed a difference at the intersection since the story was in the Cape Breton Post. He said on Thursday motorists were actually obeying the stop signs at the three-stop intersection.
“I think word has gotten around as they have been stopping.”
He said he did witness a vehicle cutting through the parking lot at Spike’s Ideal Car Care Centre Wednesday but not on Thursday.
The Gillis family of New Waterford have owned the car care centre for 55 years. Members of the family say motorists detouring through their property has always been an issue but it got worse after the three-way stop intersection was erected and they do have safety concerns.
The family hasn’t erected signs as they say there’s a cost associated with doing that and they feel motorists will continue to cut through there anyway.
The intersection previously included no traffic signs on Union Highway, a yield sign on the Sobey’s Fast Fuels side of Emerald Street and a stop sign on the garage’s side of Emerald Street.