How fast some people are going on Chenail Boulevard worries some members of Hawkesbury council.
Councillor Yves Paquette raised the issue of pedestrian safety on Chenail Boulevard during the June 23 session of Hawkesbury council. Paquette told council that he has received “many calls” from residents concerned about the number of cars and trucks speeding along that street on their way either to or from the intersections with John Street and Main Street.
Chenail Boulevard is a key traffic throughway to the Long Sault Bridge that connects Hawkesbury with Grenville on the Québec side of the Ottawa River. It is a regular route for transport freight trucks and also a shortcut for passenger commuter traffic going to or coming from Québec because drivers can avoid the slower speed and traffic and pedestrian warning lights set up along Main Street.
There are turnoff lanes along Chenail Boulevard to allow traffic to turn left into a nearby residential neighbourhood or right into several parking areas that accommodate businesses along Main Street. But there are no traffic control lights at those turnoff points to guarantee safe passage for any pedestrians to cross Chenail Boulevard at those sites. Pedestrians have either walk the length of the boulevard to the crosswalks at the John Street or Main Street intersections or wait until traffic is clear on Chenail Boulevard to try crossing at the turnoff points.
Councillor Jeanne Charlebois wondered if the main risk for pedestrians on Chenail Boulevard comes from drivers from outside of Hawkesbury, and not local drivers who would be familiar with the boulevard and its pedestrian traffic.
“I am fed up with these people who think they can rush through our town like we’re nobody,” Charlebois said. “I think that it’s time we did something so that they respect us.”
Jonathan Wilson, director of public works and engineering, told council that the Ontario Ministry of Transport has jurisdiction over the installation of traffic control lights and also the timer-control settings for those traffic lights. He said he will talk to his contacts in the ministry about about improving traffic control for Chenail Boulevard and provide a report about the municipality’s options.
