SPC to hear update on safety transportation plan

By Lethbridge Herald on October 2, 2024.

The Assets and Infrastructure Standing Policy committee of Lethbridge city council today will hear an update on the City’s transportation safety plan. Herald photo by Alejandra Pulido-Guzman

Al Beeber – LETHBRIDGE HERALD – abeeber@lethbridgeherald.com

The Assets and Infrastructure Standing Policy committee of Lethbridge city council today will hear an update on the City’s transportation safety plan.

The meeting begins at 1:30 p.m. in council chambers at City Hall.

The SPC consists of chair and councillor Mark Campbell, vice chair and deputy mayor Nick Paladino, acting mayor Jeff Carlson and councillor Ryan Parker.

The safety plan presentation will be made by Transportation Engineering manager Ahmed Ali.

The SPC will also hear a report by transportation engineer Adam St. Amant which will ask the SPC to recommend that council give three readings to a new bicycle bylaw to come into effect on Jan. 1.

Ali’s presentation will provide a look at the implementation of the transportation safety plan since it was approved in 2021 by council.

“The primary goal of the City of Lethbridge Transportation Safety Plan (TSP) was to identify the necessary actions and resources to provide a safer transportation system in Lethbridge. The plan also adopted Vision Zero; a goal of reducing major injuries and fatalities to zero by 2040. Transportation Safety Strategies were developed using a Safe System framework using actions related to; Safe Roads, Safe Road Users, Safe Speeds, and Safe Vehicles were identified,” says Ali’s report.

A PowerPoint presentation shows that in 2023 there was one fatal collision in Lethbridge, 22 that involved major injuries, 425 with minor injuries and 1,508 with property damage only.

In 2022, there was also one fatal collision but 29 with major injuries, 432 with minor injuries and 1,744 with property damage only. In 2021, there were three fatal collisions and two in 2020. No fatalities were recorded in 2018 and 2019.

In terms of vulnerable road user collisions there were 34 involving pedestrians in 2023 while 23 involved cyclists and nine motorcyclists. In 2022, there were 27 collisions involving pedestrians, 10 with cyclists and 13 with motorcyclists. 2021 saw 29 collisions involving pedestrians, 13 with cyclists and six with motorcyclists.

Since 2018 the lowest number of collisions involving vulnerable road users was 2019 when there were 14 involving pedestrians, four involving cyclists and two with motorcyclists.

Collision trends show that  aggressive drivers accounted for 43 per cent of drivers involved in fatal and injury collisions between 2018 and 2023. Unsafe speed involved in fatal and injury collisions between 2018 and 2023, however, only amounted to five per cent of instances. In 80 per cent of cases, unsafe speed wasn’t involved while the cause was unknown in 15 per cent.

Impaired drivers were responsible for only two per cent of drivers involved in fatal and injury collisions in those years.

The City has taken numerous steps to address safety including the installation of new rectangular rapid flashing beacons at crosswalks, converting yield signs to stop, and converting one-way or two-way stops to all-way stops. The City has also installed new crosswalks and enhanced visibility of stop signs and pedestrian signs with reflective material.

Those flashing beacons were installed at 13 new locations between 2022-23, the presentation states. A total of 32 have been installed since 2017.

And the City introduced harmonized playground zones which changed school zones to playground zones and changed times for reduced speed to 7:30 a.m. until 9 p.m. seven days a week.

It has also launched a three-year pilot project with 40 km/h speed zones implemented in three neighbourhoods including Canyons/Paradise Canyon, Southgate/Sixmile and Uplands/Blackwolf.

The presentation says speed has a significant impact on the ability of human bodies to survive a collision and there is a “substantially higher” probability of pedestrians surviving one at 40 km/h compared to 50 km/h.

Among the reasons pilot areas were chosen included data that show between 10 and 20 per cent of drivers go over the speed limit, as well as the number of speeding complaints.

Also implemented at 26 Ave. N. and 13 St. in 2023 is a Leading Pedestrian Intervals system that lets pedestrians being crossing before vehicles are allowed to enter the intersection. The City has five other existing LPIs and six additional locations under review.

Also introduced have been permanent speed display devices at five locations in Lethbridge and temporary speed  bumps to address speeding concerns.

The updated bicycle bylaw, according to an executive summary, removes requirements for bicycle licence plates, and includes regulations on various types of cycling infrastructure as well as continuing to regulate bicycle parking.

The present bylaw was first passed in 1979 and revised in 1986. That revised bylaw remains in place after council chose not to adopt a new one in 2010 that included elements beyond cycling.

Among the changes between the existing Bylaw 3515 and proposed Bylaw 6247: are:

• Added e-bikes to the definition of a bicycle. While bicycle and e-bikes are defined by other levels of government, the updated definition makes it clear that the bylaw applies to both bicycles and e-bikes.

• Added details for management the use of bicycle lanes. Bicycle lanes are a relatively new type of infrastructure. Sections in the proposed bylaw are intended to provide clarity related to the use of bicycle lanes.

• Added an abandoned bicycle removal process. This section allows the City Manager or Lethbridge Police Service to deal with bicycles that appear to have been abandoned on public property for more than 72 hours.

• Added wording around the use of multi-use pathways. Sections of  the proposed bylaw are intended to provide clarity relating to the use of multi-use pathways and the need for bicycles to yield to pedestrians.

• Added that the City Manager can provide exemptions to some sections. For example, the City Manager could provide micro-mobility service providers an exemption allowing their e-scooters to operate in bicycle lanes.

• Removed need for bicycle license plates. The City does not have a process, or resources assigned to issue bicycle license plates.

• Updated bicycle parking section. This includes removing the section requiring bicycle owners to pay the police for transportation and storage of their stolen bicycle and simplifying the language relating to the parking requirements.

• Updated penalties. Penalties are being increased to better reflect the cost of enforcement.