Cambridge neighbourhood may finally get all-way stop after four-year battle with city hall

Residents of a west Galt neighbourhood may finally get the all-way stop they have been begging the City of Cambridge for.

For nearly four years, the people living near the intersection of Salisbury Avenue and Hardcastle Drive have watched near-miss after near-miss as their petitions fall on deaf ears at city hall.

At issue is the layout of the intersection. Hardcastle has a two-way stop but there is nothing controlling traffic on Salisbury. Right before Hardcastle there is also a sharp curve and vehicles can appear out of nowhere to other vehicles or pedestrians who are entering the intersection from Hardcastle.

“Parents are scared of their kids crossing this intersection,” Teri Pfohl told the Mike Farwell Show. “It’s a direct pedestrian route to our park.

Pfohl has been at the forefront advocating for an all-way stop. She lives in the neighbourhood and her daughter was riding on a school bus, involved in a minor collision at the intersection in early April.

“We suspect the bus driver thought it was clear to proceed though the stop sign, but then struck a car”

Pfohl said everyone was ok, but it highlights the need for an all-way stop.

And, Pfohl said it’s not for a lack of trying, “We did a petition. We went and presented at city hall and they didn’t hear us.”

A traffic control and parking assessment in 2020 showed there were issues with the sightlines. But rather than installing an all-way stop, the city simply moved the stop signs from Salisbury to their current position on Hardcastle.

The city claimed the intersection did not meet the traffic volume threshold to warrant an all-way stop.

Pfohl believes this is a case of politicians hiding behind policy as an excuse for inaction.

“You have all these policies but you’re not considering the human factor. And where is the safety in the response?”

Ward 5 Coun. Sheri Roberts has taken up the fight. Her influence has led to the city’s transportation department ordering a traffic assessment for the area. That’s expected to happen sometime this spring.