I am a new resident of Vernon and moved here from Edmonton. I am amazed at the continued voicing of dissatisfaction of not installing traffic lights at Highway 97 and Stickle Road, and instead with the decision to extend 20th Street into Vernon as a safe way to gain access to Highway 97, instead of using Stickle Road.
The doom and gloom painted by a small minority is this new road will destroy everything in sight, and add intolerable extra time to detour on this new road in order to proceed north on Highway 97.
It is with even more amazement the continued archaic argument to put a sets of traffic lights on a major highway at Stickle Road with the idea that none of the other thousands of daily motorists would mind — “Just stick a set of lights on the highway and all will be OK."
First, it's laughable that the new road will destroy everything in the area, and even more laughable that a mere three to four-minute detour for safety reasons is so egregious! Second, it is totally absurd with the thinking that putting a traffic light on a fast moving highway will improve the situation. I came from Edmonton that has traffic lights on freeways that were installed as an easy and inexpensive traffic control mechanism.
Unfortunately, now that the city has grown, billions are being spent to remove the lights and put in proper overpasses and detours, which is not only astronomical in cost but causes incredible headaches to the citizens in disrupted traffic due to construction.
Perfect examples of the negative effect of traffic lights on a highway are the traffic congestions in Vernon and Enderby on Highway 97 as traffic enters the towns proper. To put a traffic light on Highway 97 at Stickle Road is not only shortsighted as an easy fix, but is completely irresponsible to the rest of the current citizens of this community, as well as the future citizens as this community expands and develops.
I for one am not in favour of traffic lights on Highway 97 at Stickle Road, and I would say to the vocal minority, that there is probably a large majority that shares my view.
Jeff Taylor
Vernon