As residents of Rocky Mountain House, we often travel east on Hwy 11 to Red Deer. We put up with the 80-km zone and traffic light reluctantly. Did you realize that the lights at Sylvan Lake are the only lights on a major highway in Alberta?
I do understand the need for them, though. The turning arrow part, that’s another story.
Why does traffic coming from the south — off gravel, which is very little, have a turning arrow? Traffic travelling east and turning north into Sylvan are the ones that require the turning arrow. Many drivers turn left into the median and then, now facing a red light, stop and wait for the green when all they need to do is wait for traffic going west to clear.
The width of this intersection has many motorists confused. A left turn arrow for eastbound traffic is the solution. Or possibly repositioning the north-bound traffic’s light so that motorist turning left into Sylvan from the west aren’t faced with it.
Now for that other intersection, where the Highways Department has disallowed left turns altogether.
Every time we travel the road, about twice weekly, never at rush hour and usually on weekends, we see some fool illegally going around that barrier. I can only imagine what it is like on weekdays at 8 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.
It must be too much to ask western residents of Sylvan Lake to drive to the east end to enter Hwy 11. Though with that speed limit, who can blame them!
On our last trip through, that barrier was demolished. Do people realize that taxpayers are paying to put that in and maintain it? Perhaps a jump in property taxes in Sylvan could help cover it?
How far are Albertans expected to go to protect the residents of Sylvan Lake from their own stupidity?
Melodie Cochrane
Rocky Mountain House
