Speed Review Collects P.G. Input
Roy Rea checks out information on wlidlife collisions – photo 250news
Prince George, B.C. – The Ministry of Transportation in B.C., is getting a lot of different ideas from those members of the public who are participating in the rural Highway Safety and Speed review.
The review landed in Prince George last night, one of eight open houses to be held in this public consultation.
The review is looking at issues of speed, wildlife collisions, larger vehicles and the possibility of making winter tires mandatory for all vehicles.
Rick Blixrud, the Ministry of Transportation’s Deputy Director for the Southern Interior Region says the potential for increased heavy vehicle traffic in the region because of resource development is not the reason why the issues are being reviewed now. “Simply put, its been ten years since we last looked at these issues” says Blixrud who says vehicle technology has advanced over the years “We’ve noticed a change in the safety of the vehicles with things like traction control, air bags and different highway design standards For example in the Kicking Horse section of highway 1, since we’ve completed the work there, there’s been a 25% reduction in fatal accidents on that section of highway. So we want to make sure we have the right speed for the condition of the highway, for the design of the highway an d for the cars that we have.”
(at right, members of the public share information and fill out out feedback forms)
Wildlife collisions are a major issue in this part of the Province. Blixrud says his team met separately with the Wildlife Collision Prevention Coordinator earlier in the day “We have worked with their group before and we have done some enhanced signing and we’ve done some of the mineral lick (issues) addressing those either by covering them with some material or containing them with fences to discourage animals from coming to the lick. So they’ve done some more work on that and identified other areas around the Province where that treatment might be applied, so we will look at it.”
Mitigating wildlife collisions has been the core of a research project underway by Roy Rea, a Senior Lab Instructor in the Ecosystem Science and Management Program at UNBC. He says if he had a wish list, it would have driver awareness as a priority “There is only so much we can do to stop the animals from crossing the roads, I mean you can build fences like they do in the parks, but nobody’s going to fund that in Northern B.C. it’s $100 thousand bucks a kilometre to fence the road ,so that’s not going to happen. They’re not going to build overpasses and underpasses at every single collision hot spot, so it really boils down to drivers being more aware, and driving accordingly.”
So far, Blixrud says suggestions from the public have been mixed, “We’re hearing things like differential speed limits during the winter and summer, differential speeds for commercial trucks and cars, and we’re hearing differential speed limits for night and day.”
Although the open house in Prince George has been completed, there is still an opportunity to offer feedback online at www.gov.bc.ca/safetyandspeedreview/ . Blixrud says the deadline for input is January 24th and the report should follow soon after “Depending on what suggestions are made out of that ( public input) we’ll be implementing it fairly soon, we are expecting to have a finalized report by the end of Marc h.” Blixrud says a lot of the technical work has already been done, including speed profiles on specific sections of roadway. “It’s all about the three ‘E’s” says Blixrud “Education, Enforcement and Engineering.”
Comments
$100,000 a kilometer for fencing? What the heck kind if fence is that? Making different speeds depending on the vehicle will only make things worse…we would have to twin the entire highway, or vehicles with a faster speed limit would get behind those with a slower speed limit and get impatient, causing them to make dangerous passes out of frustration. It already happens now and would only get worse.
Funny, when they implemented a 70KpH speed limit for trucks in Holland, they found that shipment times were faster, there were fewer accidents and there was a big saving in fuel.
Judging by the idiots on Hwy16 going to Vanderhoof on monday morning one would think increasing highway speeds would only make things worse. People are driving on the edge and hoping all their vehicles technology will save their asses. Several vehicles ( all full sized jacked up pickups ) slid into my lane on corners. Slow down people!!!
How about we stop handing out driver’s licenses like they’re candy at Halloween?
I have to comment on all of the number of “jacked up pickups” comments we have been having lately…
1) I dont think many people realize how high new trucks sit. Alot of them look jacked up but are actually quite low. Look at a new GMC, there is a foot of clearance in the wheel well yet the frame is hanging far below. Listening to people on this board you would think every truck in the area is lifted.
2) I travel the area highways ALOT (daily) and regardless of how people may drive them, I cannot recall ever seeing a “jacked up pickup” in the ditch. SUVs and small cars by the dozen and yes some pickups but I can honestly not think of any lifted ones.
âItâs all about the three âEâsâ says Blixrud âEducation, Enforcement and Engineering.â Under engineering is there anything that can be done to prevent the ruts in the pavement caused by the weight of the heavy transport trucks? Some vehicles I have driven get jerked around by the ruts and on more than one occasion ended up half a lane over the centerline due to the combination of these ruts and ice.
The lack of brush clearing along rights of way is a real problem that needs to be addressed.
Speed is the biggest issues. I drive these hiways all the time and i get passed by idiots on icy roads doing well over the speed limits and drifting corners.
People complain about the overconfidence of 4+4 drivers. What about the overconfidence I see in drivers with snow tires. Traction may be improved but are accidents reduced?
Not sure what the solution is, certainly it is all of the above, and then some.
As an example when we talk about ruts in the road caused by heavy truck loads, I think we can all agree that this is a safety issue, and yes these ruts can throw your car around. In fact there is significant more drag on your wheels when these ruts fill with water.
Driver education would go a long way to solving some of these problems, however we can hardly educate our kids in high school let alone have them listen, and actually do some defensive driving. A lot of the parents are part of the problem.
Drinking, drugs, ipods, phones, radio’s, speed, and general goofing around are all part of the problem.
The death toll on Highway 16 West and East is not good, and we need to upgrade this highway to the highest safety standards, while we try and deal with the other problems.
Having all the amenities located in Prince George works well for retailers, business, Casino’s and the Government, however it means that you have a lot of extra traffic on the roads, especially on the week-ends, and that is a big part of the problem.
I second that Interceptor.
Drivers not paying attention to driving is the biggest issue out there.
I 2nd that about the brush clearing. They also need to remove the furrow of snow along foothills. A driver hit a deer (last years bambi) just off 5thave last night. Had that large furrow of snow been removed he would of had a chance to see the deer. Instead a RCMP officer had to dispatch it.
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