Another unnecessary traffic fatality
To the editor:
Last week, I sat and watched as a young mother attempted to explain to her three year old why the policeman was in their home, why she was crying, and why the child’s grandmother (the latest victim of an accident at a Kelowna intersection) wouldn’t be coming home. I began to cry.
Another family has been devastated by a crash that should not have been allowed to happen.
For years it has been known that the intersections along Highway 97 and Highway 33 in the Kelowna area are dangerous due to the high number of collisions which occur at these traffic points.
Many of these collisions occur when vehicles attempt to turn left at the intersections and conflict with traffic that is traveling in the opposite direction.
We have all heard of instances of people “running the yellow light” or “failing to yield when turning,” resulting in these collisions, which have caused both injury and death to innocent people.
A violation ticket issued after the fact to the offending driver may change that person’s driving habits, but it doesn’t make any of these major intersections safer.
What is required is a change to the traffic light pattern at these major intersections to restrict vehicles to making left-hand turns only when they are allowed to do so on a green arrow, while traffic traveling in the opposite direction is stopped at a red light.
Doing so would make it safer for both turning and through traffic.
This traffic light pattern is in place at a couple of intersections in the Kelowna area, but needs to be expanded to include all of the intersections on this traffic corridor.
Without these changes, we will continue to see innocent victims being taken from their families.
The B.C. Ministry of Transportation is aware of intersection issues within our community, and I urge them to act immediately to make our highways safer for all.
My condolences to James, Julie and their family.
Michael McVicar
West Kelowna
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