SYDNEY, N.S. — The province’s minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal says he will again look at the issue of dedicated left-turn lights on Port Hawkesbury’s newly reconfigured Reeves Street, after Inverness PC MLA Allan MacMaster recently raised the issue in the house.
But MacMaster said he’s not sure if Transportation Minister Lloyd Hines will take a sincere second look at the lights and intends to follow up on the issue.
“I hope he does, and I hope they monitor the situation,” he said in an interview.
Prior to the changes going into effect, MacMaster said he heard concerns about the alterations to Reeves Street, which included the reduction of the number of lanes from four to three.
In order to secure the support of Port Hawkesbury town council in a vote on the project’s final approval earlier this year, department personnel committed to the installation of dedicated left-turn signals at the Reynolds and Pitt street intersections. The department subsequently walked away from that commitment.
“With significant changes assigned to improve the look of Reeves Street and to gain better access for pedestrians between the community college and the town, why has the government suddenly decided to remove these turn signals from the plan?” MacMaster asked during a recent question period.
Hines responded that department safety personnel indicated the turn lights were not necessary.
In September, a department spokesperson told the Cape Breton Post that, based on traffic data, the flashing green light was determined to not be a critical component for the intersections. Upgrading the intersection and associated technology to enable a flashing green light would also have significantly increased the cost of the project. The project’s budget is about $1 million, and the flashing green light would have increased the cost by $350,000, the spokesperson indicated.
MacMaster noted that the plan presented to the town and the one they voted for included the turn signals.
“Everyone wants to see these changes to Reeves Street be successful, and part of that is making sure the beautifications retain the practical need for people to be able to get to their destinations without being needlessly delayed,” he said.
“The new Reeves Street is going to bring major changes for the town, and it has to be done right. … Will the minister reconsider the plan and include the flashing green traffic signals on those streets?”
Hines replied that the overall plan for the Reeves Street changes are based on public safety.
“I'll undertake to have a look at the left turn signal again, to see if it is really required,” Hines said.
A critic of the original Reeves Street project who pushed for the addition of the turn lights, Coun. Blaine MacQuarrie has said that without the flashing lights, he doesn’t believe the road diet will work, due to the backup of traffic that he believes will form.
MacMaster said he can empathise with councillors frustrated about the about-face.
“I know it was a contentious issue for the town … I think a lot of people were happy about some of the changes but there were people out there who had raised concerns specifically about going from four lanes down to three,” he said. “I think everybody was happy about the beautification and about the connection to the community college.”
The overall Destination Port Hawkesbury project is $5 million and is jointly funded by the province and Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency.
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