Motorists travelling along one of Mississauga\u2019s busier roads may have noticed something new this week \u2014 and if they didn\u2019t slow down, they probably noticed it rather quickly.<\/p>\n
New traffic-calming measures have been installed along Clarkson Road North, giving drivers a decidedly bumpier ride between Truscott Drive and Lakeshore Road West.<\/p>\n
The new infrastructure is part of a City of Mississauga traffic-calming plan designed to slow vehicles and improve safety along the stretch of road, including around St. Christopher Catholic Elementary School and St. Christopher Church.<\/p>\n
For some drivers, the arrival of the speed humps and other measures may have come as something of a surprise, with the physical changes appearing along the road without much of the fanfare that normally accompanies such a construction project.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wasn\u2019t expecting these,\u201d one driver laughed when asked by INsauga.com about the humps.<\/p>\n
But the city has been working on the plan for some time. Clarkson Road North is listed among Mississauga\u2019s traffic-calming projects, with a detailed plan showing the locations of the new devices, pedestrian crossings and other safety measures.<\/p>\n
The plan includes traffic-calming devices at several locations, along with a raised crosswalk and pedestrian crossover (PXO) at the existing crossing near the church. The city\u2019s plan also identifies an additional proposed PXO.<\/p>\n
The school and church location is an important part of the project.<\/p>\n
St. Christopher is located at 1195 Clarkson Road North, and the city\u2019s traffic-calming plan is designed to create a series of visual and physical cues for drivers approaching the school and pedestrian crossings.<\/p>\n
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That means motorists shouldn\u2019t expect to encounter just one isolated bump and then be able to put their foot on the gas again. The plan uses several measures along the corridor to encourage drivers to maintain lower speeds.<\/p>\n
The changes are aimed at a problem that has been raised by Clarkson residents for years.<\/p>\n
During the city\u2019s environmental assessment of the Clarkson Road and Lakeshore Road intersection, residents complained about the speeding and the amount of traffic using the road as an alternative route to avoid traffic on Southdown Road.<\/p>\n
Public comments also raised concerns about children walking to nearby schools and pedestrians and cyclists crossing the road.<\/p>\n
The City said at the time that it was looking at ways to address safety and speeding concerns, including additional pedestrian crossings and potential traffic-calming measures.<\/p>\n
Now, those measures are becoming much harder for drivers to miss.<\/p>\n
The city says traffic calming is intended to reduce speeding and aggressive driving while making neighbourhood roads safer for people walking and cycling. Speed humps and raised pedestrian crossings are among the tools it uses.<\/p>\n
Traffic-calming plans also take into account intersections, drainage, utilities and the impact on services. The city says emergency services, MiWay buses, garbage collection and snow-clearing operations are considered when designing the devices.<\/p>\n
And while speed humps can be unpopular with drivers who would rather have a smooth trip, the city\u2019s traffic-calming program points to results from previous projects. Mississauga says its traffic-calming measures have produced average speed reductions of about 10 km\/h and increased compliance with posted speed limits by 25 per cent.<\/p>\n
The Clarkson Road North work also fits into Mississauga\u2019s broader Vision Zero road-safety strategy, which has a long-term goal of eliminating traffic-related deaths and serious injuries on city streets.<\/p>\n
The road changes are also arriving as the city continues broader planning work in Clarkson Village, where it is looking at ways to create a more pedestrian-friendly main street and improve walking and cycling connections as the community grows.<\/p>\n
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