Have you seen drivers running STOP signs? When STOP Signs are misplaced they can create a dangerous situation.
As we embrace summer in Southern Ontario where I reside, people are getting out of their homes to exercise and I have recognized a significant increase of more and more pedestrians on the road in our community. Whether people are walking, jogging or bicycling, everyone seems to be out more than ever as we face these challenging times.
Something else I have noticed is the number of drivers that continuously go through a three-way stop sign that is right outside of our house in our small town. I remember like it was yesterday when a gentleman and his wife knocked on our door to introduce themselves alerting us that he was running for Council. At that particular time, we mentioned to him that there were concerns about that same stop sign. Fast forward six years and although there has been police presence over the last few years, unfortunately there has never been a permanent solution to solve residents’ concerns about that particular stop sign.
This spring, we have not only noticed a significant increase in traffic but it is actually quite “jaw dropping” to witness the amount of drivers running these stop signs on a daily basis. It is literally happening all day and everyday. I cannot begin to tell you how unsettling it is to watch drivers pay absolutely no attention to the safety of our community and it how is adds undue stress and unnecessary triggers to my well being as I am a survivor of a horrific motor vehicle crash caused by a distracted driver.
Municipalities Are Responsible to Provide Safe Crossing
As I could not in good conscience stand by and witness what could potentially be a tragic incident waiting to happen, I decided to connect with the police once again. A police officer returned my call and spoke with me directly and understood my concerns. He also took the time to come to the area in question and agreed with me that there is clearly a problem with the stop signs and thought they could easily be fixed. He also mentioned it would most likely be a council issue.
In order to assist in providing safe crossing to pedestrians, municipalities are required to build infrastructure that allows them to do so. Not only should they assist in allowing all individuals to safely cross, they must pay particular attention to areas where children play and the elderly live. This is expected and it is important.
STOP signs are one of the most valuable, low cost, and effective traffic control devices when used at the right location and under the right conditions. The purpose of STOP signs are clearly to assign right-of-ways between vehicles approaching an intersection from different directions. STOP signs require the driver to STOP the vehicle before entering the intersection, yield to any traffic in or approaching the intersection and then proceed when it is SAFE to do so. When misused, STOP signs can create an inconvenient and even dangerous situation for motorists and pedestrians which is exactly what we have been experiencing in our community.
Our Councillor is very receptive in taking phone calls and although we are facing challenging times, I recently reached out to him sharing my concerns once again and started to push the issue as we have been waiting for over six years for some kind of solution. In speaking with him, I was also surprised to find out that he has lived here for 25 years and that there has always been an issue with those stop signs. Approximately two years ago, our council started to allow “short term rentals” in our community and we also offer a public beach that a significant amount of people have recently discovered. When you add guests together with permanent residents, this stop sign is becoming more and more hazardous and there needs to be a permanent solution.
Why Are Drivers Running the Stop Signs?
Recently, I have been watching the Council Virtual Zoom Meetings as I was given “heads up” by our Councillor that he was going to address the stop sign issue because he happened to be driving in the area and witnessed a Transport Truck “blowing right through the stop sign doing about 60-70 km/hr.” He pointed out that this same driver had been doing this for days and his reasoning was that he didn’t see the stop sign. Our Councillor mentioned to me that if there had been another driver or a pedestrian on the road at that particular time, they would have been completely “wiped out” and unfortunately there were no repercussions to the driver in question that works in our community. At the Council meeting, the Mayor of our Town admitted that he, too, does not understand what is was wrong with the stop sign and admitted that in the past he has almost driven right through this stop sign as well and suggested taking two of the stop signs out. I was also shocked to hear him refer to this stop sign outside of our house as “death corner.”
There didn’t seem to be any discussion about another permanent solution such as speed bumps being installed or even a flashing light and council came to the agreement that there should be “bigger stop signs” as they are convinced that drivers simply do not see these stop signs. I can personally tell you that when there is police presence in the area, each and every driver miraculously stops and is aware that they are approaching a stop sign, however, I will take this as a step to move forward in trying to rectify the situation and that council is listening. I was informed that it will take 4-6 weeks for this to happen and the best I can do is keep my fingers crossed that no one gets seriously or fatally injured while we patiently wait.
I Want Our Community to be Safe
Last summer, we were almost hit three times just trying to get out of our driveway and just yesterday, I not only witnessed three ATV’s drive right through the stop sign while not wearing helmets, I also watched a pontoon boat being hauled on a trailer with 4-5 people in the boat while in transit speeding down a bridge. When I saw these reckless drivers, I found myself taking a deep breath and thinking…”if they only knew what recovery will be like if they were to ever get into a motor vehicle crash.” I have also recently been told by a member of our council that they have no control over poor drivers and the decisions they make. And that neither council, the Mayor or our paid by-law enforcement officers have any authority with this issue and that if I continue to see reckless drivers running these stop signs, that I should continue to call the police. If I did that, I would literally be calling the police everyday and although I support police presence, I am more interested in a permanent solution. It’s all about community safety.
I cannot begin to tell you how many of our members of our Online Support Group have had their lives permanently changed in a matter of seconds due to a driver running a stop sign and what their recovery was like and continues to be. If you notice that there is an issue with road safety in your community, it is important to connect with your local Councillor and/or Mayor to share your concerns. Connect with neighbors to see if they also notice it and want to get involved. Don’t be afraid to connect with Council and keep pushing them as municipalities have the responsibility to keep our communities safe and you could stop a potential tragedy from taking place.
This article is also featured in our 2020 Summer Issue of Sharing Our Recovery.
S. Dawne McKay is a survivor of a horrific crash that changed her life forever. Dawne shares her personal journey as a Crash Survivor Blogger and also collaborates with crash survivors as Guest Bloggers allowing them an opportunity to share their stories. Dawne is also the author of the book, “Talk Crash to Me – What to Expect After Surviving a Collision and How to Manage Your Recovery” which is available for purchase on Amazon.
The Crash Support Network is a unique one-of-a-kind website consisting of an online support group, a crash survivor blog, a quarterly newsletter, “Sharing Our Recovery” as well as highly informative articles. Our website is based on relationship-building and puts the needs of survivors first by creating a helpful resource for victims and survivors of motor vehicle crashes.
