Puslinch councillors seem to prefer educating motorists and cyclists about sharing the road, rather than banning cyclists from Watson Road South.
On April 20, council received a second request from Diane Greene for a ban on cyclists (and corresponding signage) on Watson Road between Wellington Road 34 and Hume Road.
Puslinch councillor Matthew Bulmer said he appreciated Greene’s persistence on the matter.
Bulmer asked if there was a study done regarding sight lines on Watson Road between Hume and Maltby, “considering the mix of vehicles and the hidden driveways.”
Mayor Dennis Lever noted the TAC (Transportation Association of Canada) guidelines are only applied if someone raises a concern.
Bulmer said one of the concerns is speed between the cars and cyclists and the sight lines.
“I think it is a legitimate safety concern,” said Bulmer, adding he did not want Greene to think council was dismissive – “we did have a significant discussion.”
Bulmer said if a TAC study needs to be done, “this is as good a reason as any.”
Mayor Dennis Lever noted that following the previous discussion, he met with county planner Aldo Salis and the conversation moved to a similar issue in the town of Blue Mountains.
Lever at first wondered if the issue might be best dealt with at the recreation committee level.
Councillor Wayne Stokley said the recreation committee believed it was more of a community oriented policing initiative – if one was looking at it from the perspective of sharing the road.
He noted the COP committee will have a bike rodeo in June and this might be something that could be looked at.
Lever said, “since we are moving into cycling season, perhaps it is something that could be looked at in the next/or future agenda – approaching it through an education perspective.”
Director of public works Don Creed indicated he did not believe a TAC study was done between Hume and Maltby.
Fielding noted her understanding was that TAC simply addressed vehicular traffic.
Creed agreed. He said the program could potentially identify traffic within a bicycle lane – but that part of the program is something Puslinch does not have.
Fielding asked whether a study would provide any information on cyclists.
“No,” Creed said. “The program we have is strictly based on vehicle speed limits … and that’s it.”
