Residents call for increased safety measures after multi-vehicle crash on Speedvale Avenue in Guelph
A woman involved in a car crash in Guelph last week is raising safety concerns about a stretch of Speedvale Avenue. The multi-vehicle collision at the corner of Speedvale Avenue and Metcalfe Street left her car considered a total write-off.
Brittany Howlett was picking up her son on Feb. 16 around 4:30 p.m. when it happened. The crash was captured on a home surveillance camera.
“It wasn’t enough time to honk or swerve or anything,” said Howlett. “It was really sudden.”
Howett said the road is long and straight without a lot of controlled intersections and needs some type of traffic calming measure to slow down drivers.
“People kind of just fly through, and it’s very tight and uncomfortable to drive on,” she said.
The footage shows Howlett’s car coming to a stop, then being hit first from the front and then from behind.
“The front airbag hit my nose. I have a nice little bruise here still, so my nose was bleeding. I have whiplash, but otherwise, I was really lucky,” Howlett said.
Guelph police said one person was taken to hospital with an arm injury, and a 36-year-old Rockwood man was charged with careless driving.
It was not immediately clear if speed was a possible factor.
RESIDENT EXPRESSES CONCERN ABOUT SPEEDING
Howlett is not the only one calling for more safety measures to be implemented in the area.
Natalie Gohl said she has lived near the intersection for the last 15 years and has seen plenty of accidents in that time.
“Often cars going too quickly or trying to turn, we’ve often asked about stop signs or lights or something, but it hasn’t happened yet,” Gohl said.
“We’ve easily seen people flying at least 80 [km/h], going down 90 [km/h] probably in the middle of the night. We can hear them,” she added.
Gohl raised concerns about the number of schools in the area and the mass amount of students who are crossing the roads in the mornings and afternoons.
“I walk my own kids to school,” she said. “It gets busy. I won’t let them cross anywhere near here.”
She added that the traffic lights residents want to be installed are not just for driver safety but for the safety of pedestrians.
CITY TO REVIEW ROADWAY
Officials with the City of Guelph said there will be a review of Speedvale Avenue, but said they need more information first.
“The city will definitely review Speedvale within the area,” said Paul Hutchison, traffic engineering supervisor with the City of Guelph. “We are still awaiting the collision report, so once we know more about what happened and what led to the collision, then we would be able to review it appropriately.”
Hutchison said Speedvale Avenue is an arterial roadway and that means the city typically would not implement a traffic calming measure.
Arterial roadways are used to move higher-density traffic through the city.
“We don’t implement traffic calming measures on arterial roadways, however, we can look at it under our community road safety, and things like speed radar boards can be implemented,” he said
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canada outlines national action plan to fight auto theft
The federal government is launching what it calls its 'national action plan' to combat auto thefts, which will include stronger penalties for thieves, and increased information sharing between police agencies, government officials and border enforcement.
U.S. Supreme Court rejects appeal from former Guantanamo detainee Omar Khadr
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal by a Canadian-born former Guantanamo detainee who was seeking to wipe away his war crimes convictions, including for killing a U.S. soldier in Afghanistan.
What is BORG drinking, and why is it a dangerous trend? An expert explains
If you've been to a party lately and haven't seen someone drinking a BORG, you're likely not partying with college students.
Iran's president and foreign minister die in helicopter crash at moment of high tensions in Mideast
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and the country's foreign minister were found dead Monday hours after their helicopter crashed in fog, leaving the Islamic Republic without two key leaders as extraordinary tensions grip the wider Middle East.
Michael Cohen says he stole from Trump's company as defence presses key hush money trial witness
Former Donald Trump attorney Michael Cohen admitted Monday to jurors in the Republican's hush money trial that he stole tens of thousands of dollars from Trump's company as defence lawyers seized on the star witness' misdeeds to attack his credibility.
The world's best airline is paying staff a bonus of 8 months' salary
Singapore Airlines will reward its employees with a bonus worth nearly eight months of salary, a person familiar with the matter told CNN on Friday.
Woman, 35, in critical condition after her truck collided with a Via Rail train near Montreal
A 35-year-old woman is in critical condition after the pick-up truck she was driving was struck by a Via Rail passenger train Monday morning in Quebec's Monteregie region.
Canucks' Brock Boeser out for decisive Game 7 vs. Oilers: coach
Canucks star Brock Boeser will miss Game 7 of Vancouver's second-round playoff series Monday against the Edmonton Oilers, according to reports.
Investors watching posts from 'Crypto King' in the wake of fraud, money laundering charges
Former investors of the self-styled “Crypto King” say they are watching his social media accounts and worried his displays of wealth are signs he’s spending their money, even now, as another large expense tied to Aiden Pleterski has triggered a previously unreported lawsuit.