A Sussex-area man is expressing disappointment with the provincial government’s handling of his concerns over speeding traffic in his neighbourhood.
Gus Hanrahan figures he has directed up to 400 phone calls, emails and letters to the province since he has lived on Roachville Road in Roachville, N.B.
He believes traffic is too heavy and too fast for a residential neighbourhood.
Rogersville Road runs parallel to provincial Route 10. Hanrahan said many drivers use his road as a shortcut to get to the highway.
“We got people lived over the road here now that are going to move out of here because they’ve got a new baby,” Hanrahan said. “They don’t think it’s safe to be on this road. A young girl over here has three young kids. She won’t even let the kids come out the yard and ride their bikes on the shoulder of the road because the traffic was travelling so fast.”
Global News spoke with Hanrahan in July 2020 about the same issue.
He said the province did install radar speed signs, which displayed a driver’s speed while also reiterating the posted 60 km/hr speed limit, but removed them quickly.
Hanrahan’s neighbour, Ken Wright, said traffic along Roachville Road has gotten progressively worse over the 48 years he has lived there.
Wright, 90, said he’s concerned for his own safety, even while crossing the road to get his mail.
“If I see a car come over that hill over there, I don’t dare start to cross the road,” Wright said. “And that’s, what, a quarter-mile (away)? You don’t know how fast they’re going. I don’t travel very fast now myself. It ain’t safe.”
Hanrahan said signs banning truck traffic from Roachville Road were installed at both ends about a year ago, but added that car and truck drivers alike are more concerned about following GPS directions than local signage.
Truck traffic still makes its way down his road, he said.
He believes most of the traffic comes from Sussex along McGregor Brook Road.
Drivers can make three quick right turns to access Route 10, which has a posted speed limit of 90 km/hr, but Hanrahan said GPS will tell drivers to turn left onto Roachville Road instead.
He said his road is technically shorter by “a couple hundred feet.”
The New Brunswick Department of Transportation and Infrastructure sent a statement to Global News via email.
“Last summer, the department was made aware of residents’ concerns and evaluated the Roachville Road area,” wrote spokesperson Jennifer Boudreau. “In response, the department installed a ‘No Thru Trucking, except local delivery,’ sign on Roachville Road in that area.”
The statement did not indicate if further action is planned.
“Residents may contact the RCMP should they have any questions regarding traffic enforcement,” Boudreau said.
Hanrahan believes someone will have to be seriously injured or killed before action is taken.
He said the problem could be alleviated with two traffic-calming speed bumps, including one just a few metres from his home.