A recommendation to reopen Glassford Road to through traffic was made at the May 17 Gibsons’ committee of the whole meeting. A speed limit change to 30 km per hour and temporary traffic lane narrowing was also supported in the recommendation that is to be sent to council’s June 7 meeting for endorsement.
With council’s approval in just under two weeks, the road which was closed temporarily on Aug. 21, 2021, could see vehicles able to travel along its full length.
Public consultation on the new temporary changes is also being recommended. A date in the early fall of this year is being proposed, which again will require confirmation at a future date by council.
“What is important to me is that the community is happy with what is being proposed,” committee member Coun. Aleria Ladwig said.
The committee rejected a portion of the staff and consulting firm recommendation that temporary mountable traffic circle at the intersection of Glassford and Dogwood Lane be installed.
The work of the committee appeared to meet with the approval of area resident Mark Evans. During the inquiry portion of the meeting, he congratulated the committee with working through a tough issue saying the recommendation “sounds great."
Resident Jody Schick made a cautionary comment to the group about discussing road design work without having an engineer present. He said he hoped that a representative of consulting firm Urban Systems would be in attendance at future meetings as their expertise is “vital” and will make use of elected officials’ time more productive.
Schick also encouraged the Town to conduct traffic counts after the new set of temporary safety measures are installed, so that “you have accurate data and something to assess."
