Hamilton’s former engineering boss says he wasn’t hiding the Red Hill Valley Parkway friction report

Hamilton's former engineering director Gary Moore says he was not hiding a report that found low friction on the Red Hill Valley Parkway, despite never sharing it with other city staff or alerting anyone to its recommendations.

The 2013 Tradewind Scientific report, part of a larger study on the parkway by consulting firm Golder, was uncovered in 2018, after Moore's retirement as engineering boss, and made public in early 2019. The fallout from the revelation led city council to ask for the $18 million public inquiry.

During his final day of testimony Thursday, Moore said it was no secret he had asked for friction testing, including speaking about the testing at Hamilton's public works committee. But he believed the report wasn't complete and he wanted more information before sharing it or addressing the recommendations.

I talked about it at committee, it's not like I was hiding it," he said.

Answering questions from city lawyer Eli Lederman, Moore recalled being asked once by other city staff to see the report, and claims he said he was awaiting clarification. But if staff had insisted, he would have shared the report, he said.

Both Tradewind and Golder had recommended further friction testing and possible remedial action - including exploring microsurfacing - because of the friction levels, but that never happened.

Crash statistics, including those reported in an award-winning 2017 Spectator investigation, show the parkway saw a higher proportion of crashes, particularly when the road was wet. By the time the friction report was made public in 2019, six people had died in crashes on the parkway since it opened in 2007.

Over five days of testimony, Moore repeatedly said he asked Golder principal Ludomir Uzarowski for clarity about the test results, which used a U.K. standard that Moore said he didn't understand. There is no Canadian standard for friction testing on roads and Moore did not know how to compare the test results to earlier friction testing done by the Ministry of Transportation.

However, Moore's testimony is contradicted by Uzarowski and there is no record of Moore making requests to Golder for more information.

Why not share the report with other senior staff whose questions had spurred the testing? asked commission counsel Emily Lawrence.

I wasn't in the habit of off-loading half-done stuff," Moore said.

Moore said he never had information about safety concerns due to friction on the parkway; friction is not commonly tested on roads here.

There was no urgency" in the Tradewind and Golder reports, Moore said, adding that there were no timelines on the recommendations. In his experience with other consultants, when there is an urgent need to fix something unsafe, the city is notified immediately and given timelines to complete work.

Moore also said it wasn't his practice to blindly accept" consultant recommendations. He wasn't convinced there was a friction issue. Ultimately, it became a moot point, he said, because the city decided to resurface the road.

Moore's five days of testimony this month marked the second time he has been called as a witness. The inquiry is taking a scheduled two-week break and is expected to resume with more public hearings Aug. 10.

Nicole O'Reilly is a crime and justice reporter at The Spectator. noreilly@thespec.com