Huron County's engineer says traffic at the intersection of Hwy. 4 and County Rd. 25 has increased in the last two or three years.
But Steve Lund says the increase is not enough to justify the traffic signals Blyth-area residents have requested in a petition.
Lund says they monitor the traffic at the intersection regularly and they also look at accidents.
He says the accidents are largely from following too closely or entering the intersection when it's not safe to do so and those accidents won't likely be reduced by installing traffic signals as opposed to a turning-type movement which could be influenced by traffic signals or a roundabout.
Lund acknowledges traffic at the intersection is likely to increase as more development takes place there but it's too early to determine whether the increase will justify signals.
Lund adds Hwy. 4 is a banked curve so any re-configuring, whether that be traffic signals or a roundabout, would involve concerns about the grading. Money to look at that has been set aside in the 2018 budget and council will continue to monitor traffic flow and accidents at the intersection.
“Since 2014 it has increased somewhat – not enough to justify a set of traffic signals. Looking at the accident data, there are accidents, but looking at the nature of the accidents, most of them were following too close or pulling into the intersection when it was unsafe.”
“We'd have to look at the size and type of the developments. New development does generate traffic and certainly, that will add to the justifications, but until we know what that impact is, the scope of it, it's hard to say.”