CALGARY – A local politician is questioning if changes should be made to a stretch of Calgary roadway with an increasingly dangerous reputation.
A 63-year-old woman was killed and four others seriously injured in a crash on Glenmore Trail on Saturday morning.
Police say a Ford F-150 that struck the center median went flying over the guard rail and hit a Honda Accord.
The crash killed the front passenger of the Honda, and injured three others, including a five-year-old girl.
It comes almost two months after a different deadly crash on the same stretch of Glenmore, just west of Deerfoot Trail.
In December, 18-month-old Travis Bertrand was killed after the truck he was in also jumped the median and hit an oncoming semi.
Some are suggesting built up gravel may have acted as a ramp, launching the vehicle over the barrier. Others suggest the barrier simply isn’t tall enough.
“To have the exact same accident happen again when there isn’t snow piled up obviously is a cause for concern,” says Ward 9 Councillor Gian-Carlo Carra. “Everyone is asking is this a coincidence, or is this something do to with this stretch of road?”
It’s an issue that Cara says the city must now address.
The first cable barriers were installed on the north end of Deerfoot Trail in 2007. The province paid just over $8 million to line much of the median along the roadway.
Alberta Transportation estimates about a forty per cent reduction in serious or fatal collisions in the area since then.
They say the barriers have almost completely eliminated fatal crossover collisions.
“The protocol is that for every fatal traffic accident the roads department and the police department sit together and really analyze what happened, what went wrong, and what can be done,” explains Carra.
Police are investigating if speed was a factor in Saturday’s collision, but say no alcohol was involved.
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On Monday, Carra raised his concerns about the safety of the barricade on Glenmore Trail as a matter of urgent business at city council.
The city’s General Manager of Transportation maintains that the barrier in place at the time was in good condition.
Malcolm Logan says raising the barriers is something the department would be interested in looking into, but points out there are other high traffic areas in the city without any barriers at all.
He also added it would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars which the city would need to find in its capital budget.
Logan points out that in both fatal crashes speed is being investigated as a factor and that Calgarians need to remember to drive carefully when conditions deteriorate.
He didn’t rule out improvements to the barriers that are in place right now on Glenmore Trail, but he maintains as it is now, Glenmore Trail is safe.
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