Pictou still struggling with Veterans Drive traffic issue
Issues surrounding a short residential street in Pictou is taking town council a long time to find a solution.
Veterans Drive, located behind the Royal Canadian Legion in Pictou, was back on council’s agenda again Monday during a committee meeting with some councillors asking that a decision be made sooner than later on the topic.
“In my mind, we need to make a decision on this,” said Coun. Nadine LeBlanc. “It has been 10 months we have been talking about this.”
According to town staff, resident’s complaints of high speed and traffic volumes on the busy street have been in front of town council for the past eight years or more.
A least two studies have been done in the past to outline the issues and focus on possible solutions. A recent report commissioned by the current town council recommended that Veterans Drive be closed to traffic between Dunromin Terrace and the commercial development that includes Sobeys.
The report states this this could be done as a trial installation by using temporary concrete barriers until funding is available to construct something permanent.
The study considered the possibility of Veterans Drive as a oneway street, either southbound or northbound, but this was not part of its final recommendations.
Mayor Jim Ryan said he supports turning Veterans Drive into a one-way street southbound which would take motorists from Haliburton Road to the commercial centre. They could leave Sobeys or Tim Hortons via Weaver Road if their intentions were to travel back into the town and this would alleviate anyone’s concerns about using the new roundabout.
CAO Scott Conrod said this would not help reduce traffic volumes or speed concerns since the recent study said the majority of traffic comes from Haliburton Road and up Veteran Drive to the commercial sector.
Conrod suggested that town staff clarify some information with the company that drafted the report because what they are recommending on paper and what they have been told in person seem to be two different things.
He pointed out this has been an issue for council for a long time, but in the past few years the street has been widened and paved.
Coun. Eric Daley said since the most recent report said the roadway is meeting all the criteria so maybe the decision council has to make is to do nothing.
“Maybe we don’t have to change anything,” he said, adding that he also wants a decision soon so the town and the residents can move on.
Coun. Malcolm Houser said the town can’t afford to put a sidewalk along the street and, as an avid walker, he thinks the wide flat shoulder has made the street one of the better ones to walk on in the town.
“A sidewalk won’t change the volume of traffic or the speed,” he said.
LeBlanc said the focus on Veterans Drive was done because of complaints by residents, but she questioned what will happen when residents on other streets lodge similar complaints. She also asked who was going to police the street to make sure it was being used as one-way.
In the end, council agreed to move the discussion to its August council meeting.