A new citizens group — made up of members whose names would be familiar to anyone who’s been to a community meeting or been on a newspaper op-ed page — had its first meeting with city officials last week.
The Sudbury Citizens for Safety (SCS) is made up of Lionel Rudd, a retired Laurentian University mining engineering instructor, John Gaul, an executive member of the Friendly to Seniors advocacy group (and former Northern Life columnist), John Linsdsay, the chair of Friendly to Seniors, and Tom Price, an advisor to Ward 2 Coun. Michael Vagnini.
The quartet sat down with Joe Rocca, a traffic and asset management supervisor with the city, Coun. Michael Vagnini and Inspector Dan Despatie of the Greater Sudbury Police Service.
Information provided by the citizens’ group said the purpose of the meeting was to introduce the SCS to city officials and advise them of issues the group wants to tackle relating to road safety. The big issues for it, Sudbury Citizens for Safety said, are red light cameras, photo radar, electronic signage and road salt use.
In a news release, the SCS said it was told progress continues on efforts to bring red light cameras and photo radar to the city. Photo radar is still being discussed at the provincial level, SCS said, while city council hasn’t made any decisions on red light cameras, and possibly won’t make any before 2019.
Electronic billboards and their potential to distract drivers was another topic of discussion.
The brightness of the signs, which can have an effect on visibility particularly at night, was of particular concern to the group. Rocca said the issue is one that will be discussed by officials with respect to the city’s signage bylaw.
Road salt and road safety were also discussed, particularly with the ongoing use of road salt in winter and its impact on the environment. The SCS said jurisdictions across Canada and the U.S. are looking at the issue.
Road safety discussions included driver behavior, but also structural issues that could impact driver behavior and safety, such as swerving to avoid a pothole can lead to a collision. The SCS suggests the city’s Road Safety Committee, which is mostly tasked with education and outreach, should have a broader mandate to include other aspects of road safety.
