INNISFAIL – After almost four months of waiting, town council was presented with the findings from a comprehensive draft pedestrian safety review of 20 intersections around town.
And while there are no immediate safety concerns identified in the review, administration had told town council it will embark on a three-to-five-year operating plan to address the issues identified by a Red Deer-based consultant over the past months of study.
Council called for administration to have a pedestrian safety review following a passionate presentation on Feb. 26 by longtime Innisfailian Lindsay Pickard who was nearly struck by a motor vehicle in the downtown core on Feb. 15.
Since then, the town retained the services of Aptus Engineering Ltd., an engineering consultant in Red Deer, to conduct a thorough pedestrian safety review at various locations throughout town.
On July 22 at town council’s regular meeting, Steven Kennedy, director of operational services, presented the consultant’s key findings and recommendations.
Kennedy informed council the consultant report, which was an extensive document at about 150 pages in length, was not part of the agenda package.
The work done by Aptus Engineering Ltd. included the study of 20 intersections throughout town.
The intersections were assessed through reviews of existing data, including data from the 2019 Traffic Forecast Model, 2023 Trails & Pedestrian Master Plan Update, Trans-Canada Trail, as well as the proposed Dodd’s Lake parking lot design.
“I think we tried to highlight where all of the main thoroughfares were. We included a couple intersections I heard council wanted in regards to Dodd’s Lake and up on Lakewood Drive and Aspen as well,” Kennedy told council.
Council was told the consultant recommendations were broken into three levels, including 14 out of the 20 identified intersections that needed immediate attention.
Kennedy said this can done within the town’s operational budgets, and it would involve additional signage, improved aligned painting and markings.
Another level was marked “additional” and will require more funding to get the necessary work done.
And finally, there is the “ultimate recommendation” level, which Kennedy said are higher-end ones requiring “significant capital dollars” to complete.
“There are no real immediate safety concerns identified throughout the report,” said Kennedy. “Administration is recommending to just incorporate this into our three-to-five-year cycle of operating to continue making improvements towards our pedestrian safety.
“We'll continue to just update as we get these things taken off the list,” he added. “We'll provide you with an update with anything that's significant that we think is high priority.
“If it does require an additional budget within the operating budget, we will come to council probably this fall to show you which ones that we see, and then have an estimated cost as well.”
He told council that administration will apply for a grant through the Trans-Canada Trail program for the upgrade to the crossing at 56th Street and 52nd Avenue Close.
Mayor Jean Barclay noted there will “probably” be more congestion along Main Street in the area around 44th Avenue to 46th Avenue from the pending opening of the new five-unit mall that has a drive-thru.
Barclay wanted to know if administration has plans for traffic control and traffic flow, noting the Innisfail Dairy Queen is immediately east of the new mall.
The mayor wanted to know if motorists would be turning right onto Main Street.
Kennedy replied that once the mall development is operating there will be another pedestrian count for the area, adding one was done in 2019 without the current development.
As for the traffic flow query, he said it’s “a right exit only” out of the drive-thru, and a right turn in at the intersection of Main Street and 46th Avenue.
Nevertheless, Barclay later said she still had a “bit of concern” with the new mall area and wondered if it would be wise to reach out to Dairy Queen staff and talk to them about future traffic flow.
“It’s more to the planning and infrastructure discussion that is usually identified during those developments, and obviously they are changing,” replied Todd Becker, the town’s chief administrative officer. “I think we need to understand that we need to reevaluate, make sure we’re doing things properly.”
Council unanimously approved a motion to accept the draft pedestrian safety review report as information.
