Hamilton councillor pitching speed cushions to fight ‘reckless’ driving in his Mountain ward

A Hamilton Mountain councillor is proposing a number of residential streets in his ward be outfitted with speed cushions to help deter reckless" drivers.

In a motion set for the public works committee Tuesday, Ward 6 Coun. Tom Jackson is asking the city to install nearly 40 speed cushions across eight locations in his east-Mountain ward.

Jackson told The Spectator that his constituents were the main proponents for the motion. Each resident group had petitions that have been in the works for nearly a year, some even before the pandemic hit last March, he added.

Reductions in speed limits as well as signage alerting drivers to children crossing have already been installed on some of the streets.

At the end of the day, these speed cushions are the most effective," said Jackson.

The locations in the motion include: Queen Victoria Drive; Quaker Crescent; Anson Avenue from Upper Ottawa Street to Carson Drive; Templemead Drive from Tudor Place to Ingrid Court; Royal Vista Drive from Upper Gage Avenue and Templemead Drive; and Everest Street from Templemead Drive and Upper Ottawa Street.

Included in the motion is a stretch of both Royal Vista Drive and Templemead Drive - both of which are in proximity to the intersection where 11-year-old Jude Strickland was struck and killed by a pickup truck in early December.

Council already approved a reduction of the speed limit on those same stretches back in February and the area around Templemead Elementary School will be designated a community safety zone.

People are fed up with the speeding, the reckless driving on their streets and a majority of these streets have become cut-through streets," said Jackson. (Drivers) are using these mid-block streets just to avoid the main arteries, which is very unfortunate, very sad and quite frankly, irresponsible."

Another problem area Jackson pointed to is Anson Avenue between Upper Ottawa Street and Carson Drive, which is home to a city park as well as two elementary schools. Quaker Crescent, where he met with at least 40 families who expressed concern, is also on the list.

The residents are so angry with motorists that are just racing through," he said. And these petitions, they're just such a powerful message ... I definitely don't want to ignore them."

Jackson is hopeful that if the motion passes, the process of having the speed cushions installed could be expedited." He's also proposed using his ward's capital reserve and discretionary funds to cover costs - which have been capped at $259,200, as per the motion.

Alongside his speed cushion motion, Jackson is also proposing an audit of the busy" intersection of Mohawk Road East and Upper Gage Avenue.

He estimates approximately one thousand seniors live in apartment buildings surrounding the intersection, which also includes a McDonald's, a Tim Hortons and a Food Basics.

That intersection is already heavily" regulated, he said. It's equipped with a red light camera, increased pedestrian crossing times, no right turns on red lights, as well as senior warning signs coming up to the intersection.

But surrounding residents still have lingering safety concerns, said Jackson.

With a review, Jackson hopes the city's transportation department will consider additional safety measures such as a community safety zone designation, speed limit reductions and additional signage and enhanced traffic signals.

I want to be proactive and get ahead of this," he said.

Fallon Hewitt is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach her via email: fhewitt@thespec.com