Truck Traffic meeting a cause for flared tempers By Wendy Gabrek On Thursday, September 4th an Open House was held at the D.A. Jones Branch of the New Tecumseth Public Library (Beeton branch) to hear concerns from residents regarding truck traffic in Beeton. About 50 concerned residents attended the Open House that was put on by the Town of New Tecumseth, represented by Ward 6 councillor Richard Norcross and Director of Engineering, Rick Vatri. The evening provided an opportunity for residents to speak with town staff one-on-one to outline their concerns and gather information about the development of a transportation improvement plan for the community of Beeton. Maps of the Town of New Tecumseth, Beeton Proper, and a future Downtown Enhancement Plan were set up for reference by residents. As the meeting began, it became apparent that several residents had similar questions, and so Councillor Norcross opened a public forum, taking questions one at a time. Despite efforts to reassure Beetonians that their concerns were being heard and that action to mitigate the problem would be taken, the meeting quickly spiraled out of control, with some residents shouting and even one resident banging an electric kettle off the library’s kitchenette counter in an effort to regain control over the meeting – and vent frustration. The main concerns identified included: the number, frequency and speed of trucks currently using the County Road (Main Street) as a bypass to other centres; the damage being done to municipally maintained streets with each truck that passes; damage caused to homes from trucks “rattling” windows and door frames as they pass at all hours of the day and night; the need for additional speed enforcement protocols from the Nottawasaga OPP; the need for traffic signals at Dayfoot and Main Street and possibly Centre and Main Street. Several suggestions also came forward from residents on how to improve the situation. Those suggestions included: installing speed bumps to slow traffic – an idea that was deemed unsafe for emergency vehicles, maintenance vehicles and snowplows; installing 40 km/hr signs far outside of the town limits to get trucks to slow down before entering the community; requesting that the OPP conduct more frequent speed traps in Beeton; the placement of a stop sign at Main and Dayfoot and possibly Main and Centre Street; and creating a bypass like the one in Alliston to reroute trucks around the community of Beeton all together. Although a stop sign had previously been installed and removed on Main Street, that seemed to be the most popular option to slow trucks until traffic lights could be installed. Councillor Norcross also reminded residents that OPP traffic enforcement was still taking place and that new ‘$5,000 Fine’ signs had been installed at Beeton’s border, to stop the use of jake brakes by truckers. The concerns of the residents were recorded on suggestion sheets and an attendance record was taken back to the Town office for crunching and contact purposes. Next steps are unknown at this time.
Posted on: Wed, 10 Sep 2014 14:54:36 +0000
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