Community safety zones may be coming to a street near you, West Nipissing.
The idea of creating community safety zones was brought to council by the Emergency Measures and Public Safety Committee. Councillor Georges Pharand noted, “Usually, they are designated near schools, playgrounds, hospitals, and wherever there are vulnerable road users, such as children or seniors.”
You’ve all seen the signs: Community Safety Zone, Fines Increased. Well, West Nipissing doesn’t have those signs, and the Public Safety Committee thinks its time to get posting.
Pharand continued, “They can also be designated in other areas to prevent speeding, such as through some of our rural villages.” Fines are usually doubled for traffic offences occurring within the marked zones.
Community Safety Zones (CSZ’s, to those versed in the Ontario Highway Act), are relatively new. The province created them in 1998, integrating the zones into the Highway Act. The Act noted the zones are meant “To promote public safety.”
The Act continues: “The council of a municipality may by by-law designate a part of a highway under its jurisdiction as a community safety zone if, in the council’s opinion, the public safety is of special concern on that part of the highway.”
The same applies to municipal roadways and streets.
Overall, council supported the idea, and staff will put together a report complete with some options as to where to implement these zones. There was caution about adding too many zones. Councillor Roch St-Louis warned, “If we put up too many signs, people are just going to ignore it, so we need to be very strategic on where we think it will be best to have these.”
Such signs could help reduce speeds within the region and improve safety, Pharand noted. He added, “Sometimes all that’s needed is a reminder and a warning that there are consequences to speeding in a CSZ.”
“I think it’s worth it for the small investment in signage that’s required,” Pharand said.
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
