Simcoe North MPP Jill Dunlop confirmed Friday stoplights will be installed at Atherley Road/Highway 12 and Orchard Point Road well ahead of the initial 2028 timeline.
With plans for intensification in the area underway, residents have expressed growing concern about the safety of the intersection.
“I’ve heard concerns from the residents in my past four years,” Dunlop told OrilliaMatters. “We did take it forward early on, (but) at that time, MTO (Ministry of Transportation) didn’t see a need for it.”
Dunlop said the approval came sooner “because of the many recent developments and upcoming developments planned for the area.
“I don’t have the exact details on what that date is, but it is going to be accelerated sooner.”
She said she worked with Mayor Steve Clarke and council on fast-tracking the lights.
“They’ve put a motion forward, so we put that to MTO, and they understood the case and agreed to it,” she said.
Orchard Point resident Mark Coles, whose letter to the editor about the problem was published yesterday, is happy with the news, and he outlined the safety issues generated by traffic in the area.
“I was very pleased that they actually have taken some action,” he said. “They’ve got some planning to deal with, some work to do, but with the new building going on … it’ll be perfect timing for all this added volume.”
Coles said the major issue with the intersection is attempting to make a left turn when leaving Orchard Point, as high traffic volumes have made it difficult to safely do so.
“I’ve seen so many near misses that I don’t think we’d get through a year or two years without somebody being killed there. At times, you can sit there and wait for 10 minutes, and between the cars pulling out of the gas station, and cars coming southbound, and cars coming northbound, you can’t get a window to get out there,” he said.
“Most people have been turning right and going across the Atherley bridge, going into the Tim Hortons parking lot … and coming all the way back across the bridge to make the turn. Every time you go out there and make a left-hand turn, you’re basically taking your life into your hands — not all times of the day, but at a lot of times of the day.”
Orchard Point resident Kathy Hunt was also pleased to hear about the traffic lights being installed, but was still worried about intensification in the area.
“It’s a very dangerous intersection, no matter how you look at it, not only for vehicles, not only for residents that live here, but anybody that’s driving in the area (and for) pedestrians and cyclists as well,” she said.
“One of the problems is the area’s being intensified, without the appropriate infrastructure, in a location that’s not suitable. So, lights are good for the safety of everybody using that intersection, but it doesn’t change my mind at all about the fact that the neighbourhood is overly dense right now.”
