The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

3 | W aterloo C hronicle | T hursday,June 27,2019 w aterloochronicle.ca Waterloo ChronicleVoluntary Pay Contribution Program We ask you to consider contributing $30 per year towards delivery of your Community Newspaper. Many of our Readers have made the decision to show their support for the Waterloo Chronicle. It is our pleasure to provide the Waterloo area with a Community Newspaper. 475 ThoMpsoN dRIve, uNITs 1-4, CaMbRIdge, oN N1T 2K7 foR MoRe INfoRMaTIoN Call 519-623-7395 ext. 795080 Yes! I would like to contribute to the Waterloo ChroniclePlease find a cheque for $30 enclosed for a 1 year contribution. signature: _________________________________________________________ Name: _____________________________________________________________ address: ___________________________________ City:___________________ postal Code: ____________________________ phone #: _______________________________ We Appreciate Your Support! The Region of Waterloo has agreed to recount traffic at a northwest Waterloo intersec- tion, but the odds are it won't see any extended form of traffic con- trol for at least the next few years. "We've been counting this in- tersection over the last few years, assessing the need for an all-way stop or traffic signal," said Bob Henderson, manager of transportation engineering at the Region of Waterloo. "From what I recall in the past, it wasn't necessarily close to warranting a traffic signal or all-way stop." The intersection is at Conser- vation Drive and Erbsville Road. Residents in the area have been lobbying the regional govern- ment to at the least install an all- way stop, but the region main- tains it must meet certain met- rics, including vehicle counts and collisions, to warrant such a move. Currently, there are stop signs on Conservation Drive. Erbsville Road, however, has no traffic controls. Since 2014, there have been nine collisions at the intersec- tion. The most came in 2015, when there were four and three of which resulted in personal in- jury. There have been no fatal collisions at the intersection in the last five years. Part of the issue, according to some residents, is the shape of the intersection. The two roads aren't perfectly square, which leads to a blind corner of sorts for traffic at- tempting to proceed straight or turn onto Erbsville Road from Conservation Drive. But, Henderson says, if there were a serious design flaw, it would be seen in collision statis- tics. "Generally, if there is a geo- metrical issue or a substandard design issue, the collision histo- ry should really show up and show that information. It should correlate. But the collision histo- ry at this location does not." If an all-way stop is installed, it could lead to further issues as well, added Henderson, whose department looks after more than 3,500 intersections across the region. "They could potentially be in places where people don't expect them. You can't just put them anywhere and everywhere with- out using engineering judg- ment," he said, adding that con- sistency across the region and province is important. Regional Coun. Jim Erb, who has been liaising with concerned residents in the area, said that while the region and City of Wa- terloo recognize there are chal- lenges with the area, any deci- sions made should be based on evidence. "I think there's a process that needs to be followed and we need to respect that and trust the mu- nicipal staff and the technical people that they retain ... so we can make an informed decision." With new residential develop- ment on the way in the area - to the tune of more than 6,000 new residents - that intersection will eventually see more traffic. Once development plans are drawn and transportation stud- ies are complete, the region would move forward with im- provements, at the cost of the de- veloper. Royce Bodaly, Ward 6 council- lor at the City of Waterloo, told the Chronicle he'd like to see stop signs installed at the intersec- tion as an interim measure. "Regardless of what this transportation study says, I think it would be prudent for us to make it a four-way stop in the interim," he said. TRAFFIC STATS DON'T WARRANT ALL-WAY STOP, SAYS REGION Aerial photo of Erbsville Road and Conservation Drive intersection. Region of Waterloo/GIS ADAM JACKSON ajackson@waterloochronicle.ca NEWS RESIDENTS HAVE BEEN LOBBYING FOR THE INSTALLATION OF AN ALL-WAY STOP, BUT OFFICIALS SAY THERE'S NOT ENOUGH TRAFFIC SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT WATERLOOCHRONICLE.CA