Please consider the following:
Report Traffic Violations to the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) and ask for Enforcement
The key issue that we are dealing with on Bulyea Road and Terwillegar Drive is dangerous drivers that choose not to obey traffic signs/signals. Please report these dangerous drivers to the EPS and request enforcement on Bulyea Road and at the Terwillegar Drive intersection. The EPS dispatches officers to locations based on the feedback they receive from the public. We need more people from our community reporting these dangerous drivers in order to change their behaviours. We have over 700 people on the Brookview Crier. If you have never reached out to the police before, this would be a good time to submit your first report. You have several options for contacting the police:
1) Report your concerns to EPS online at https://www.edmontonpolice.ca/TrafficVehicles/TrafficConcerns/General. It takes less than five minutes to fill out the online form. The more people that report traffic concerns along Bulyea Road and Terwillegar Drive, the more likely our community will get some police enforcement. Every time you see someone speeding or turning right from the centre lane, report it online. If you see three, four, five vehicles in a row turning right from the centre lane, include that information in your report. It seems some people from our community have made dangerous driving a daily habit. Report your observations on a daily basis, even if you just reported them the day before. Once you submit your online report you will receive an email confirmation.
2) Report your concerns to EPS using the Non-Emergency line at 780-423-4567. If you prefer to talk to someone, this works as well.
Refer to https://www.edmontonpolice.ca/ContactEPS/EPSComplaintLine for more information on reporting through the non-emergency complaint line.
3) If you can get a license plate number for these offenders, or have dash cam videos, please provide this information to the police. Please note that traffic incident(s) where a license plate is obtained from the suspect vehicle and is being reported for consideration of charges, must be reported at an EPS Divisional Police Station. A witness statement must be provided as well as a willingness to attend court, if required. The nearest police station is at 1351 Windermere Way.
Send Roadway Design Change Requests to 311 by phone/App or online at https://311.edmonton.ca/reports/list_services
Ask for one or all of the following:
1) Ask The City to remove the pedestrian crossing on the north side of the Terwillegar Drive North intersection. It is much safer for pedestrians to use the pedestrian crossing that is already in place on the south side of the intersection. With two lanes of traffic turning northbound from 40 Ave and one lane turning northbound from Bulyea Road, all three lanes of traffic end up waiting while pedestrians cross at the north intersection. Removing the pedestrian crossing on the north side of the intersection will improve traffic flow and keep pedestrians safer. If your kids are currently crossing Terwillegar Drive to get to school, remind them to use the south crossing.
2) Ask The City to provide an advanced green light from Bulyea Road between 7:15 and 8:45 am (a ten second advancement before the eastbound traffic from 40 Ave gets their green). This would allow Bulyea Road vehicles the opportunity to enter the intersection from the correct lane and safely make their way to the westbound lanes before traffic from 40 Ave starts up. If you have already asked for this, ask again.
3) Ask The City to improve the signage at the intersection, specifically related to straight through lanes. There are currently five single lane right turn signs on four different light poles along Bulyea Road, plus a six-foot high DMS sign that clearly states "Single Right Turn Only". There are right turn arrows painted on the road in the right hand lane (not the centre lane). Please see the photos below. Ask The City to add straight through directional arrows to the Terwillegar Drive traffic signal light pole going westbound from Bulyea Road, AND, to paint directional straight through arrows on the road in the centre lane (this will help EPS with enforcement when drivers claim the signage is not clear).
4) Ask yourself, do you want to go back to the decades long plan for the intersection at Bulyea Road and Terwillegar Drive? Do you want an overpass at this intersection? You can ask The City for that, but I suspect it will be many years before that happens, if it happens at all, and remember there were many loud voices in our community that voted against an overpass at this intersection when it was supposed to be built. The community wanted the current design. If you need a refresher on how Brookview ended up with what we have now at that intersection, please read the following articles:
https://globalnews.ca/news/4042620/cartmell-urges-council-to-support-upgrade-of-terwillegar-drive/
The City has already responded to concerns recently brought forward by the community related to speed and short cutters on Bulyea Road. Speed tables were installed, rather quickly I might add. The quick response by The City highlights what can be done when multiple people from our community reach out to The City with the same specific request.
A reminder that The City is currently working on the 142 Street Pedestrian/Cyclist Bridge, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2025. When the bridge opens, Brookview students/residents will be able to use Brookview's multi-use trail and pedestrian bridge to get to Riverbend Junior High, Harry Ainlay, Scona, the University and downtown. This perimeter trail around Brookview will be much safer for pedestrians and cyclists. Vehicle and pedestrian interactions at the Terwillegar Drive and Bulyea Road intersection should be reduced significantly when people start using the pedestrian bridge to connect with Edmonton's active transportation network.
Re Counselor Cartmell and those running in the next election - what will you ask for - be specific
Thank you to those who have recently shared their perspectives related to our current and future City Council. Please refer to previous Crier posts for their perspectives and for a sample letter to send to Counselor Cartmell. Consider including some of the above actionable items when reaching out to Counselor Cartmell. If any of the candidates running in the upcoming election make a promise to improve pedestrian safety in our community, be sure to ask them specifically how they will do it and when we will see solutions implemented.
Stay safe everyone.
Sincerely,
Shelly Stevens
Brookview Resident
PS. The photos below highlight the signage already in place on Bulyea Road heading towards the Terwillegar Drive intersection.
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