Deadly intersection doesn’t meet criteria for traffic lights

“Anybody coming out of that neighbourhood is risking their lives,” warned Coun. Steve Hillier during a meeting of the Planning and Environment Committee.

Hillier argued that approval of the latest residential development in the Victoria on the River subdivision should coincide with the installation of traffic lights at the corner of Sheffield Boulevard and Commissioners Road.

On July 31, a motorcyclist was killed in a collision with a truck at the intersection.

Neighbours had previously been sounding the alarm about the T-intersection where westbound vehicles on Commissioners Road approach from a curve and eastbound traffic crests a hill.

However, a planning report reads, “Traffic studies completed to date indicate that the intersection of Sheffield Boulevard and Commissioners Road East has not met the warrant thresholds for signalization based on recorded traffic volumes.”

As more development occurs in the area, staff commit to update their analysis.

“Is there a way that council can override the warrants and allow for a traffic signal to be included at this location?” Hillier asked during the committee meeting.

London police closed the intersection of Sheffield Boulevard and Commissioners Road East to investigate a serious crash on July 31, 2023. (Daryl Newcombe/CTV News London)Deputy Mayor Shawn Lewis recognized the emotional impact that the fatal collision has had in the neighbourhood, but stressed that the data-based criteria for a traffic light exists for good reason.

“We [council members] and the public at large, are actually the least qualified to make those decisions,” explained Lewis. “We need professional engineers, who understand roads and transportation flow, to make those decisions.”

Residents of the fast-growing neighbourhood have no other option but to use the intersection as the only entry and exit to the subdivision.

City staff told the committee that an internal road connection will eventually allow drivers to enter the neighbouring subdivision and its access to both Commissioners Road and Hamilton Road.

The planning committee recommended approving the latest development in the area, leaving Hillier to take his request to an upcoming meeting of the Civic Works Committee.

“We’re building up this area, and [the city] hasn’t supplied the supplemental services to go with it. All we’re asking for is a little more safety,” he told CTV News London.

Hillier will hold a neighbourhood meeting to discuss the concerns on Sept. 16.