Calls are increasing for the Province to make changes to what many say is a dangerous intersection west of Okotoks.
A serious collision on Highway 7 at Big Rock Trail (16 Street) on Jan. 18 closed the highway and sent an Okotoks woman to Foothills Hospital via STARS Air Ambulance with serious head injuries. Another accident occurred at the same location, a day later around 7:30 a.m.
Cherie Andrews, who runs the Chinook Honey Farm, located at the intersection, said traffic levels at the intersection have increased significantly in the past five years.
She said the greatest danger is when people are attempting to turn left off of Highway 7 and impatient drivers use the right-turn lane to pass rather than wait.
“If you’re not familiar with the intersection and are not prepared for that happening, then you could easily get broadsided at 100 km/h, because of course that’s the speed limit in the area,” said Andrews.
She said painted lines and signs indicating the right lanes are only for turns only has not made the intersection safer. People ignore the signs on a regular basis, she said.
“It’s almost invariably happens every time I’m through that intersection that someone blows through it,” said Andrews. “It’s a hazard.”
She said she’d like to see the Province step up and change the intersection to have a designated left-turn lane, with or without traffic lights. It would mean widening the road by one lane in each direction, but it would be well worth it, she said.
In the meantime, she’s reaching out to Highwood MLA Wayne Anderson and MD Coun. Delilah Miller to help her fight for safety on the highway.
Miller said she’s been working on the issue since she first took office in 2013, when Andrews brought her a 100-signature petition she took to the Province. She has raised the same concerns with the government regularly over the past three years.
“They did a traffic study of Highway 7 and reported to council and myself that they didn’t feel there was any need to do any kind of corrections or changes to that intersection,” said Miller. “They felt it was due to driver error.”
Despite individual residents and the MD rallying to have changes made, the Province continues to dig in its heels, she said.
In a written statement to the Wheel, Alberta Transportation would not say whether changes would be considered in light of last week’s collisions and previous incidents.
“We are concerned to hear about recent collisions near the intersection of Highway 7 and Big Rock Trail,” wrote Julie MacIsaac, public affairs officer for Alberta Transportation. “It’s always our priority to keep Albertans safe on our roads.
“Alberta Transportation will review the collision report when it’s available to determine the causes of recent collisions and contributing factors to determine a course of action.”
In the meantime, the MD is doing what it can to take matters into its own hands.
On Jan. 18, MD council passed a motion to have its engineers study the intersection and determine the best ways to make it safer. Once that report is complete, Miller intends to take it to Edmonton and present the ideas to Alberta’s Transportation.
She hopes to see some changes come in 2017. Waiting on the Province is frustrating, she said, but the MD’s hands are tied when it comes to provincial highways.
“It’s on their radar, so they know about it,” said Miller. “It’s unfortunate that people have to get hurt before they make any changes to anything.”
