The intersection of Highway 519 and Highway 23 is Ryan Wagner’s worst nightmare.
“I’ve been responding to MVC’s in this intersection for over 12 years now and we see everything, all different magnitudes of severity,” said the Nobleford Fire Chief.
The Village of Nobleford has been pushing for something to be done for over 20 years.
It was not until recently the province decided to turn it into a roundabout, which should be completed by early fall.
However, since January there have already been seven multi-vehicle collisions – four in the month of June, one of which was fatal.
The village decided that waiting for the roundabout was not good enough and that something needed to be done sooner. Officials asked the province put in digital signs cautioning drives as they approach the intersection.
“To warn people that this is an intersection you have to pay attention, be patient and you will make it through safely,” said Kirk Hofman, CAO of the Village of Nobleford.
The village was instrumental in getting them up as quickly as they did.
“The bureaucracy of government can often drag things down. By Nobleford getting involved with these sign placements we were able to put something in place within one week,” said Hofman.
The signs, which cost 65 dollars a day, are being funded by the province until the roundabout is completed.
“Digital signage is a temporary initiative to bring awareness to the intersection so that as drivers approach they’ll use caution,” explained Carrie Sancartier with Alberta Transportation.
In the two weeks the signs have been up, there has been zero collisions. A trend Wagner hopes will continue.
“We’re optimistic that it will. Anything that’s going to stop the speed from being high speed impact zone will be a good thing,” he said.
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