Changes are being made to an Alberta highway after an August 2016 crash that claimed the lives of two Calgarians.
A request by family of the victims will lead to the extension of a no-passing lane on Highway 9 near Township Road 270.
A five-ton cube van legally passing a semi-trailer collided head-on with a car on Aug. 30, 2016, killing passengers Jonathan Sobol and Alec Bracegirdle.
Sobol was the Chef at Starbelly restaurant in Calgary, Bracegirdle was a rising web developer on a photo shoot for the business website.
After the crash, Sobol’s father, Bob, asked the province to review the safety of the passing lanes on the stretch of highway.
Alberta Transportation says the minimum sight distance required for safe passing met all guidelines, but due to the highway geometry, some north-bound drivers might have difficulty judging speed and distance of vehicles in the opposing lane.
“We have looked at what the north-bound drivers might see. Sometimes when you’re on the inside of a curve, vehicles can disappear from sight behind the vehicle your trying to pass, so we’ve taken that into consideration and we’ve decided to extend that 150 metre no-passing zone. We’re going to extend it another 600 metres,” said Ralph Rolston, operations engineer for Alberta Transportation in Calgary.
Phil Bracegirdle, Alec’s father, says the highway changes won’t bring his son back, but he hopes it will reduce the chances of collisions in the future.
“Anyone who goes to that road or takes a look at that road would know that those lines should have been there all along because people can and do take risks whenever they’re not made to stay within their lane,” he said.
“This is the right thing to improve safety, I appreciate Alberta Transportation recognizing the fact,” Bob Sebol added. “Anything to prevent another tragedy that led to their deaths is going to be a benefit.”
The 23-year-old driver of the cube van is facing two traffic charges and fines of careless driving and passing while unsafe.