Is Alberta Transportation’s three-year budget putting Whitecourt citizens at risk?

By Laura Bohnert
The battle is still on for Whitecourt in its attempt to have traffic lights installed at the intersection of Highways 43 and 32.
Previous attempts to convince Alberta Transportation to approve plans for the addition of the lights have all but gone unheeded. “It all comes down to money,” explains Maryann Chichak, mayor of Whitecourt. Previously, there has been no room in Alberta Transportation’s three-year budget to make the addition of the lights possible.
“The town and county wrote a letter to Alberta Transportation,” Mayor Chichak explains, “following a meeting with them to see if illumination lights and traffic signals could be added to the three-year budget. Budget 15 will be released mid-March, and we are hoping to see it in the three-year plan.”
“We are currently not aware of whether it will be [in the plan] or not,” Mayor Chichak adds.
Whether or not the lights will be installed is a provincial, not a municipal decision, but both Woodlands County and the Town of Whitecourt have been in discussion with Alberta Transportation and are pressing to have the decision approved.
The town and county feel the installation of both illumination lights and traffic lights at the intersection of highways 43 and 32 are an important proactive measure in ensuring safety.
As Dave Komaike, Director of Infrastructure for the Town of Whitecourt, describes, “Both town and county feel it is essential to protect residents — and anyone else who is passing through town.”
“You have 15,000 vehicles traveling that stretch at 70 km/h daily,” Komaike explains. “It’s a hazardous area, and train crossings and the movement of larger trucks increases the hazard.”
The potential for accidents to occur at this intersection, Komaike continues, is “a detriment to both communities and residents.”
“Traffic moving along where Highways 43 and 32 intersect is shown to be in excess of 15,000 vehicles a day and, on a daily basis, 450 vehicles want to turn left, facing into that traffic. It is a definite hazard,” Mayor Chichak explains.
Mayor Chichak further explains that there is “a lot of residential development along that section,” and, as Komaike adds, “more development means more traffic.”
“We would like to see Alberta Transportation be proactive as opposed to reactive in response to the increased traffic demands,” states Mayor Chichak.
The Town of Whitecourt and Woodlands County have been pressing for a number of years to have these lights installed. “It is important for both communities, and we want to feel we are being proactive. We wouldn’t want to see any traffic fatalities,” Mayor Chichak emphasizes.
Mayor Chichak further disclosed that “a conversation held by Woodlands County at a county council meeting [on Tuesday, February 17] concluded with the decision that the county won’t be approving any further development applications until the lights are installed.”
The decision was made by Council in an attempt to proactively meet the increasing safety demands of the area and its citizens.