Trail city council has awarded a contract to help slow down traffic at the intersection in East Trail where vehicles turn toward the hospital and high school.
MarWest Industries Ltd. of Castlegar will do the work at Second Avenue and Goepel Street over the summer for $384,000, including a $50,000 contingency. The intersection was identified in the city’s active transportation plan as a safety concern.
In 2023, an engineering firm studied ways to address pedestrian safety and accessibility.
According to a city staff report, the improvements “are intended to enhance pedestrian safety by shortening crossing distances, improving curb ramp access, formalizing pedestrian movements, and providing clearer traffic calming features at the intersection which seek to slow vehicles as they proceed through the intersection and further on Second Avenue.”
Work includes reshaping the intersection, building concrete curb extension bump outs, improving the curb and sidewalk, installing curb ramps, and completing asphalt milling and paving, among other things. The project also includes moving existing signage and mailboxes and improving the bus stop.
The city received four compliant bids on the work, of which MarWest’s was the lowest. The project is expected to begin immediately and should be finished mid-August, before traffic flows increase due to St. Michael’s Elementary and J.L. Crowe Secondary being back in session.
The city’s budget for the project was $340,000. In addition to the construction work, the engineering design work cost $56,000. The city will apply a $39,000 ICBC grant toward the project, leaving a shortfall of $61,000, which the city expects to make up through other capital projects that came in under budget, such as the RCMP station roof replacement.
Municipal services manager Jared Miner told council that the project includes installing an underground conduit, which would allow for the later addition of a flashing sign, although such a sign isn’t within the current scope of work.
“This is a timely project that is going to be beneficial for everyone,” said councillor Terry Martin, who added that on a recent visit to the Handy Store at that intersection, he witnessed four near-accidents involving cars coming down the hill. He said he also noticed groups of kids walking on the road, off the sidewalk, yet traffic didn’t slow down for them.
