Shortcutting still a problem, some Belgravia residents say
Speed humps, curb extensions among the changes made in university area
When the City of Edmonton released April traffic data for the Belgravia neighbourhood last week, it showed that people drove at appropriate speeds and in appropriate volumes through the University of Alberta-area neighbourhood.
But for some long-suffering residents fed up with non-local drivers cutting through the neighbourhood, that’s not the reality.
Steve Schroeter of the Belgravia Community League wants comparative data to see how the numbers and measures will address the biggest traffic concern in the neighbourhood.
“We have a serious problem with shortcutting,” he said.
City engineer Maida Zederayko says the main purpose of speed humps and curb extensions introduced as trial measures are to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists. The University Avenue service road was changed into a one-way street westbound between Saskatchewan Drive and 119 Street as part of the trial.
Zederayko said the effects of the safety measures could also discourage shortcutting behaviour.
“Even though there’s shortcutting, the volumes are still reasonable,” she said, adding that if traffic volume numbers were exceeding the appropriate number for the roads, the city’s strategy would change to reflect that.
Zederayko also noted that the community has expressed a lack of interest in the most dramatic way to end shortcutting — restricting access at multiple points in the neighbourhood.
Ward 8 Coun. Ben Henderson hasn’t heard much citizen feedback so far on the traffic safety measures, either positive or negative.
“From where I’m sitting, my guess is the measures we’ve done are a success,” he says.
Going forward, the primary methods used to gauge success will be resident feedback and data from after safety measures were implemented. Henderson feels that after many public sessions on traffic in Belgravia, residents will appreciate the ability to take part in a survey instead.
Until June 18, Belgravia residents can offer their feedback on the trial traffic safety measures by visiting a City of Edmonton webpage.
The city anticipates making the measures permanent in 2018.