There were fewer crashes on Waterloo Region roads in 2012 than in previous years, but a report on those crashes released Tuesday reveals bad news for cyclists, pedestrians and buggies.
In total, there were 5,795 reported collisions on regional roads in 2012 – down from 6,031 in 2011 and the lowest number seen since 2009.
Additionally, there were fewer fatal crashes and fewer people injured in collisions.
There were a total of 130 crashes that involved cyclists, up from 104 in 2011.
Crashes involving pedestrians and horse-and-buggies also occurred slightly more often in 2012 than in the previous year – from 151 to 154 and six to eight respectively.
Among individual intersections and stretches of road, the corner of Ottawa Street and Homer Watson Boulevard in Kitchener remained the most dangerous, with 209 crashes occurring over the past five years.
Traffic engineers expected 103 collisions at that intersection.
The corner of King and Fountain streets in Cambridge remained in second place on the list of the most crash-prone intersections, with 115 collisions where 30 were expected.
King Street and University Avenue in Waterloo was the third-most dangerous intersection in Waterloo Region, up from sixth place in 2011.
Various changes have already been approved for each of those intersections and will be installed in the coming years.
Out of the 16 roundabouts in Waterloo Region, 10 saw fewer crashes than expected in 2011.
Of the six that saw more crashes than expected, the worst was the controversial circle at Homer Watson Boulevard and Block Line Road in Kitchener, which saw 53 crashes when 29 were expected.
For pedestrians, the worst intersection to traverse is King and University, which saw 11 pedestrians hit by vehicles over the past five years, followed by Main and Wellington streets in Cambridge, which saw eight.
Cyclists were most likely to be hit at the Cambridge intersection of Hespeler Road, Munch Avenue and Isherwood Avenue, with seven crashes reported over five years.
