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Engineer reviewing intersection where fatal collision occurred

A traffic engineer’s report will determine if short-term changes should be made at the intersection where a Benalto man was killed on his way home from work on Monday evening.
DeadlyIntersection1RandyAug4_20110804155750
An SUV darts northbound on Sec. Hwy 781 between westbound Hwy 11 traffic south of Sylvan Lake Thursday.

A traffic engineer’s report will determine if short-term changes should be made at the intersection where a Benalto man was killed on his way home from work on Monday evening.

Transportation Minister Luke Ouellette, MLA for Innisfail-Sylvan Lake and a resident of Sylvan Lake, said on Thursday that he has never had any trouble with the intersection of Hwys 11 and 781, where a two-vehicle collision claimed the life of Benalto resident Harvey Dussault.

The minister often has engineers review roadways after serious collisions have occurred.

The driver of the other vehicle has been charged with making an unsafe left-hand turn after her car collided with Dussault’s motorcycle at the crossing.

There’s nothing wrong with the intersection itself but too many people don’t follow basic rules, including turning into the nearest lane and travelling at a reasonable speed, Ouellette said.

“If people followed the rules, they probably would never get into trouble. I think that the biggest thing is, people have to get themselves familiarized with the rules, don’t get impatient. To really drive defensively . . . you’ve got to be anticipating what them other drivers are doing.”

Data from Alberta Transportation suggests from 2000-09, there were 76 collisions in total where Hwy 781 crosses Hwy 11. They include one fatal collision, 38 collisions with injuries and another 37 injuries in which there were damages, but no injuries.

Statistics for the same time period at the intersection of Hwys 11 and 20, which is 1.6 km further east and controlled by a set of traffic lights, show 77 collisions, including one fatal collision, 14 injury collisions and 62 non-injury collisions.

Sgt. Duncan Babchuk, head of the Sylvan Lake RCMP detachment, said he and his fellow members are seeing far too many crashes along that section of highway, which runs between Hwy 20 and Hwy 781, caused in part by people driving much faster than the posted speed limit of 80 km/h.

Babchuk said he has ticketed drivers who were doing up to 140 km/h through there, although it was not at a time of day when there was other traffic on the road.

He questioned the logic behind twinning the westbound lanes for only half of the distance between the two intersections, creating a bottleneck in which westbound drivers race from the lights to get into the through lane.

That entire section of highway has become dangerous because it is carrying more traffic than the loads for which it was designed, said Babchuk.

Lights installed 10 years ago at Hwy 20 have reduced, but not resolved, the problems there, he said.

Bachuk termed the Hwy 781 intersection as a tight one that is inadequate when traffic volumes are high.

“Lights would be a big problem solver there. But they said no, they have other plans for that. At 80 km/h, if someone makes a mistake there, you’re dealing with a serious collision.”

The Town of Sylvan Lake has jurisdiction up to Hwy 11, said Ouellette.

Trent Bancarz, a public affairs officer with Alberta Transportation, said the department completed a planning study for Hwys 20 and 781 in late 2010. The long-term plan is to build an interchange at 11 and 20 and then realign Hwy 781 south of Hwy 11 to connect to the interchange. The existing intersection would then be closed.

But there is no long-range plan in place to perform those changes, said Ouellette. It’s not in the three-year plan and his department does not plan beyond a three-year window. That’s because of the trouble that can erupt if people base decisions on long-range plans that may not unfold in the way in which they were originally laid out.

bkossowan@www.reddeeradvocate.com