New traffic light and restricted left turns coming to John Laurie Blvd. in October

Changes are coming to John Laurie Boulevard, and the city is hoping the new traffic calming measures will curb collisions along the major route in northwest Calgary.

Pat Grisak, the city's mobility management co-ordinator, said the city is adding a traffic light on John Laurie at the Charleswood Drive intersection. 

Additionally, no left turns onto John Laurie will be allowed from 19th Street or Brisebois Drive N.W. during morning and afternoon peak times on weekdays. That includes vehicles exiting the parking lot at Nose Hill Park across from Brisebois Drive.

Grisak said the changes are being made to prevent collisions and injuries.  

"It's time that we do something to address that, to address the safety concerns that exist," he said. 

About 42,000 vehicles travel on John Laurie Boulevard between 19th Street and Brisebois Drive each day, according to the city. Grisak said the Charleswood intersection has the most concerning collision history along the route. 

Since 2015, there have been 90 collisions at Charleswood and John Laurie. According to the city, 19 of those collisions, or 21 per cent, resulted in injuries. The citywide average for injury collisions at intersections is 10 per cent.

The city held a public information session about the changes to John Laurie on Monday evening at the Brentwood Community Association. It will hold another session open to the public at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at the Triwood Community Association.

Concern about rear-end collisions

Grisak said a traffic light is the best method to curb the number of crashes at Charleswood and John Laurie, but this solution does add a potential for rear-end collisions as vehicles come to a stop.

"What we will do is we're going to install flashers on John Laurie Boulevard in advance of the [traffic] signal at Charleswood Drive to indicate to motorists either that the signal is about to change or that it is red and they will be required to stop," he said.

Grisak said rear-end collisions that happen at traffic lights are typically less severe than the injury-causing crashes the city has been seeing at the intersection.

But not all local residents are convinced the traffic light is a good idea.

Shelley Ervin from Edgemont said she supports restricting left turns onto John Laurie, but she worries about the collisions that may happen at the Charleswood traffic light in the winter.

"I'm really concerned about the possibility of rear-ending other vehicles because they're going to be sliding into the vehicles that are stopped at the bottom of the hill," she said. 

In addition to installing flashers ahead of Charleswood, Grisak said the city will put up signs at 19th Street and Brisebois Drive in advance of the changes to warn drivers of the upcoming left-turn restrictions. 

"We'll monitor the compliance with the signs, and if there are difficulties, we'll perhaps look at other measures," he said.

Grisak said drivers will still be able to turn left onto John Laurie from Charleswood at peak times.

The changes to John Laurie Boulevard are expected to be completed by late October.