Signs warning motorists to watch for turtles and other wildlife will not be going up along a county road here as part of a proposed test project.
At the April 27 meeting, Wellington County council approved roads committee minutes including a defeated motion to install signs between Concession 4 and Wellington Road 34 in Puslinch to assess the effectiveness of this type of sign.
The signs would have alerted motorists of a greater than normal risk of encountering wildlife (particularly turtles) on the road ahead.
“There is an interest that is gaining momentum from a group of residents to have the county install signs in areas known to be turtle crossings, to warn motorists of this activity,” stated county engineer Gord Ough in a staff report.
The report notes an ad hoc group in the Town of Erin has recently arranged to have these warning signs installed and there is a group in Puslinch currently advocating for the erection of “Please Slow Down – Wildlife Crossing” signs on Wellington Road 35.
“The area that we expect to be asked to sign, if these signs are effective in reducing the number of turtles being run over, would expand dramatically,” Ough explained in the report.
“The wildlife safety advocacy groups are passionately interested in making the motorists aware of areas where wildlife (particularly turtles) are known to cross the road, with many turtles being run over and killed annually.”
While the initial installation cost would be minimal, Ough pointed out, “if this is the start of a more widely-implemented program, involving the widespread initial installation and the possible ongoing sign replacement due to theft of these unique signs, the cost could become more of an issue.”
Donation
Ough noted the local conservation authority was prepared to donate 25 signs to the county at no charge and there is also a process through which the Toronto Zoo will donate signs.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story indicated the proposal to install the warning signs was approved. It was in fact defeated at the committee level.
