Ancaster Coun. Lloyd Ferguson looks to improve Wilson and Rousseaux street intersection

Hamilton staff have rejected calls from residents living in Ancaster's Maywood neighbourhood to create a community safety zone to reduce traffic and speeding vehicles within the area.

Residents, led by the Ancaster Village Heritage Community, had asked the city to create the zone to deter cut-through vehicles through their neighbourhood from drivers looking to avoid the long lines that back up along Wilson and Rousseaux streets during peak hours.

Bob Maton, chair of the group, said the group had proposed the idea of a community safety zone about two years ago and has seen their ideas dropped.

They have said no to every traffic measure, anything that would slow down traffic," said Maton. Traffic has not decreased. Cut-through traffic is increasing because of the amount of traffic on Wilson Street."

But transportation staff said the neighbourhood's traffic data doesn't merit the designation since there are fewer collisions and a lower number of speeding vehicles.

Still, staff said, the neighbourhood is part of the city's speed limit reduction implementation program scheduled to be deployed in 2022. The plan is to reduce speed limits within particular neighbourhoods to 40 km/h and 30 km/h in designated school zones. A sign would be installed at the entrance of each neighbourhood, advising drivers that they are leaving or entering a 40 km/h area.

Staff stated that while the neighbourhood speed limit reduction is different than a community safety zone designation, it is anticipated" it will impact driver behaviour in ways consistent with the intent of their request."

But Ancaster Coun. Lloyd Ferguson wants to reduce the amount of cut-through traffic that is occurring within the neighbourhood.

He had requested transportation staff craft a report on how to fix what he calls the dog's breakfast" of an intersection at Wilson and Rousseaux streets. He said that because of the way the lights are timed, traffic backs up along the roadways, prompting drivers to cut through from Wilson Street to Rousseaux Street to avoid the intersection.

We need to fix this busy intersection," said Ferguson. People are in a hurry to cut through the neighbourhood community."

Mike Fields, acting director of transportation operations and maintenance, acknowledged that because of the pandemic, studies on neighbourhood traffic had stopped and the roadway safety section underwent a few changes." He said the studies on the Maywood neighbourhood have been completed and staff can discuss the results and how to improve the intersection with Ferguson.

It's been over two years," said Ferguson. The community deserves an answer to this by the experts."