Just off of a roundabout and down the road from the
Canadian Tire Centre
, Derreen Avenue is the only entrance into a newly developed Stittsville neighbourhood.
At its intersection with Culdaff Road, it’s also the only four-way stop in the area allowing pedestrians to cross the street.
“It’s the main intersection in and out of the community,” said Tyler Sommers, who’s lived in the neighbourhood for just over three years. “It’s fairly busy (and) it’s very active.”
According to a traffic sign near the intersection, which Sommers said he first noticed around mid-July, Derreen Avenue traffic will no longer be asked to stop as of Aug. 15.
The intersection was under the community developer’s responsibility until construction was fully complete, and the City of Ottawa assumed responsibility for the area in June, according to an emailed statement from Heidi Cousineau, the city’s manager of traffic, safety and mobility.
“The intersection is currently operating as a four-way stop during a standard signage adjustment warning period,” Cousineau wrote. “We recognize the community’s concerns about this intersection and are actively reassessing options to determine the best permanent solution for the community.”
For the development’s residents, the removal of the four-way stop is a concern for pedestrians looking for a safe place to
cross the street
— the next closest controlled crossing area is the roundabout about 200 metres up the road. It’s especially a concern considering children in the neighbourhood whose school bus lets off right at the Derreen Avenue and Culdaff Road intersection.
“If you’re in the neighbourhood and you want to cross Derreen (Avenue), where would you go?” Sommers said. “If there’s no stop sign there, I don’t know how anybody on the wrong side of the street is going to get across except jaywalking.”
It’s a similar concern for Devesh Wadhwa, who has lived in the neighbourhood for about a year and a half. He currently lives with his parents, his wife and his four-year-old son. As the first entry point inside the community, Wadhwa says he notices drivers tend to go “a lot faster” as they leave the roundabout off the highway.
“They don’t realize they’re entering the community and they need to be cautious of the pedestrians,” he said. “I think it’s a safety hazard.”
Wadhwa said he feels “anxious” for the safety of his father, mother and wife when they go on walks in the area. “I want them to feel safe,” he said.
But as a parent to a four-year-old starting school in September, he’s also mindful of the intersection where his son will soon be picked up and dropped off every day. “A lot of kids pass through that intersection.”
Both Wadhwa and Sommers say they emailed their councillor, Glen Gower, expressing concern about the planned removal.
Gower shares similar concerns as the residents. “They want a safe way for people to cross the street … without a four-way stop, it’s not as safe, and I agree with that,” the Stittsville councillor said.
Derreen Avenue as the drop-off and pick-up zone for the school bus is “a good example” of needing to make roads safer for “the most vulnerable population,” he added.
The city is beginning the process of getting the stop signs reinstated permanently, he said, but “the hoops (he) has to jump through as a councillor” and the “threshold requirements” for where stop signs can be established are “incredibly convoluted.”
“As I’ve been telling residents, it’s a bit of a ridiculous process,” Gower said. “The stop signs have been there for three or four years since construction started in the neighbourhood.
“Let’s just leave them up … I’d like to see the four-way stop reinstated.”
The intersection is already designed to accommodate additional traffic controls, which could include retaining the four-way stop, according to Cousineau’s statement.
Gower has asked to “expedite” the review process to keep the stop signs, which can take anywhere between three and six months. If the area is approved, stop signs can be put in within a matter of weeks.
But if anything else hinders the process — like needing to upgrade
sidewalks
to meet the city’s accessibility standards — it can take “a bit longer.”
“We’re going to keep pushing for a safe solution for people who are just trying to cross the road,” Gower said.
As mother to a two-year-old daughter and an eight-month-old son,
road safety
is a main concern for Celeste Pinkney, who moved her family to the neighbourhood in April.
Having noticed
two recent collisions
with children on bicycles in the city, she said removing the stop signs is “concerning” for the children in the neighbourhood who frequently ride bikes and scooters in the streets.
“If it wasn’t because of my kids, I probably wouldn’t care as much,” Pinkney said. “I’m more worried because we are always out on walks, and my daughter likes running fast … I’ll probably avoid the area on our walks.”
For Sommers, the hope is that the four-way stop will be reinstated by the time his three-year-old son starts school more than a year from now.
“I definitely worry about everyone else around here with kids who catch the bus,” he said. “The main concern for me is that there’s nowhere to cross.”
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