Aurora moving to put speed cushions on Kennedy Street West to slow traffic

Yorkregion.com
May 23, 2016
By Teresa Latchford

Residents of Aurora’s Kennedy Street left council chambers feeling victorious Tuesday, but those who regularly use the route to get from Bathurst to Yonge might not.

Earlier this year, the town mailed out 1,514 surveys to residents of Conover Avenue, Kennedy Street West, Mavrinac Boulevard, McMaster Avenue and Stone Road to gauge interest for having speed cushions installed to slow traffic.

In order for the town to move forward on the installations, 70 per cent of residents had to respond in support of it. However, in all five areas, the survey didn’t show the needed support to continue with the installation of the traffic calming measures, according to the most recent staff report.

Gilberto Pesegi, a resident of Kennedy Street West, took matters into his own hands and went door-to-door with a petition and 98 per cent of those he spoke with felt speeding was a problem and that something needed to be done.

“No matter what time of day or night there are always cars screaming down the street,” he told council. “It’s like a speed way from Bathurst to Yonge.”

The residents on the street would support the installation of speed cushions and a few more stop signs to make the street safe, he said.

“I am okay with the traffic on the street but I’m not okay with the speed at which it travels,” he said. “It’s not fair to my wife who has to pull out of the driveway and it’s not fair to my kid (who) can’t play basketball in the driveway.”

Dr. Beverly Bouffard and her son, Jean-Luc echoed Pesegi’s concerns.

“Imagine if you lost your best friend by being hit by a car,” Jean-Luc said. “I don’t want to lose any of my friends.”

Children’s balls are getting run over, one child has been hit and the issue won’t resolve itself, Bouffard added.

Residents have tried parking their cars on the street to slow traffic, although that only resulted in a vehicle being hit. York Regional Police have responded to complaints and laid charges while monitoring the area but it isn’t a permanent solution.

“It is not their job, nor do we want our police officers posted permanently our intersection. This is the town’s burden to solve,” Bouffard said. “Placing the burden on residents to repeatedly report to Road Watch is impractical, unethical and inefficient.”

It is nearly impossible to capture licence plate numbers on video with a phone, she said, adding that neighbourhood residents have tried.

“Speed has serious consequences when a pedestrian is involved,” Bouffard said.

A pedestrian struck at 32 kilometres-per-hour has a 5 per cent chance of the collision being fatal, but when hit at 54 km/h the chance of being killed increases to 85 per cent.

It is the town’s job to ensure the residents in this neighbourhood and the children playing in their front yards or walking to the nearby park are safe, she insisted.

The message was heard loud and clears as members of council directed staff to move forward with the speed cushion pilot project on Kennedy Street West pending final approval at next week’s council meeting.