‘It’s disgusting’: Richmond Hill man frustrated by process to get stop sign installed

Correspondence between resident, city over issue dates back to 2012

Yorkregion.com
Oct. 2, 2023
Melissa Wallace

“A simple stop sign.”

That was the subject line of an email Leonard Feldt sent to YorkRegion.com on Sept. 18. Unfortunately, the process of getting a stop sign installed in his neighbourhood has been anything but simple.

His frustration began to grow in 2012, when he emailed city staff about the need for a stop sign at the east intersection of Baynards Lane and Regent Street (across from Theobalds Circle) in Richmond Hill.

“Try to see a car approaching from the east,” wrote Feldt, who has lived in the neighbourhood for 25 years and works in the construction industry. “In order to do so, you need to enter into the intersection. It is not possible to see a car approaching until you’re halfway into Regent Street and by then it’s too late.”

After collecting traffic data at the intersection, city staff informed Feldt that the stop sign wasn’t warranted, but that they would conduct a further site inspection for sightlines and visibility. In 2020, Feldt reached out again and was told by staff that a caveat for implementing the all-way stop was that another one at Regent Street and Ellery Drive was only 90 metres away. According to the Ontario Traffic Manual (OTM), adding another all-way stop wouldn’t be appropriate unless supported by a traffic operations study. Staff said they would conduct the study and report their findings.

Feldt continued to email staff for months, asking them to share status updates and look into the issue. “Nobody is doing anything,” he said. “I’m frustrated and upset that a safety hazard is being ignored.

“Everybody's expecting the other guy to do something. How do you operate a city like this?”

Finally in October 2022, Feldt received the news he was hoping for. Staff completed the assessment and would be recommending that council implement the stop at the intersection. In February 2023, it was approved by council. By September 2023, Feldt’s patience had worn thin.

“I got every excuse in the world nothing is happening and this is still a safety concern.” He mentioned that the intersection is particularly bad in the winter when the snow mounts up, further reducing visibility.

After visiting the site with Feldt the afternoon of Sept. 20, YorkRegion.com reached out to the city. When Feldt left his home the morning of Sept. 22, he was surprised to see stop signs had been installed.

City staff did not respond to questions about the cause for the delay, but said, “Work on the all-way stop signs at Regent Street and Baynards Lane is expected to be complete by the end of October. Typical stop sign installation takes six to eight weeks. However, this project requires concrete work and therefore requires more time. In the interim, city staff have installed temporary stop signs, which will remain in place until work is complete.”

Though initially pleased to see the new stop signs, Feldt couldn’t help but feel angry at the process.

“Only until they were going to look bad in the public’s eyes, that was the trigger for action,” he said. “It’s disgusting that the city is guided by public perception rather than by what's right.

“They had every opportunity to do what was right for safety and welfare and they didn't do it."
Feldt said this was just the “tip of the iceberg” of several issues that the city hasn’t acted on and that the stop sign was only one example.

“It doesn't make it right that deficiencies exist constantly and nobody does anything about it, even when they've been told. That is an act of irresponsibility.”