In October 2023, Hamilton City Council requested a report from city staff on the possibility of expanding no right turn on red restrictions and leading pedestrian and cycling intervals at signalized intersections across the entire city.
Nearly two years later, staff responded with an information report to the city’s Sept. 8 Public Works Committee meeting recommending against city-wide implementation in favour of a site-specific approach.
Staff also created implementation guidelines to evaluate which intersections should be prioritized for the measures.
The October 2023 motion requesting the feasibility of banning right turns on red lights city-wide and introducing leading pedestrian intervals came from Ward 2 (Downtown Hamilton) Councillor Cameron Kroetsch and was seconded by Ward 1 (Chedoke-Cootes-Westdale) Councillor Maureen Wilson.
It was passed unanimously at committee when it was presented.
The motion came after a cyclist was killed on Sept. 28, 2023, after being hit by a cement truck that was turning right onto James Street from York Boulevard.
Leading pedestrian intervals and leading cyclist intervals give pedestrians and cyclists a head start at traffic signals by displaying a walk signal or bike specific green signal before motor vehicles receive a green light.
In Hamilton, pedestrians are given a six-second head start.
Of the city’s 660 signalized intersections, there are 41 that already have leading pedestrian intervals.
As for no turn on red restrictions, the city currently has 62 locations with no right turn on red restrictions and nine with no left turn on red restrictions involving one-way streets.
However, the staff report says that “while implementing these restrictions city-wide might appear beneficial, collision data shows that such broad application would provide limited overall safety benefits.”
A staff review of other municipalities in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area also found that no municipality has implemented no turn on red restrictions city-wide.
Staff write that there are a number of issues with city-wide implementation, including “low compliance, potential delays to public transit, increased congestion, traffic diversion to nearby streets, aggressive driving due to frustration, and environmental impacts from idling vehicles.”
Instead, staff will implement the restriction automatically at high-risk locations and will evaluate other locations in the city using their new criteria.
Location decisions consider factors such as sightlines, road design, traffic volumes, and collision history.
The city’s Transportation Division will also be piloting the use of LED blank-out no turn on red signs that will be illuminated only at specific times during the day.
Staff say that the implementation of no turn on red restrictions cost approximately $500 per intersection.
In terms of leading pedestrian intervals, staff say that the Ontario Traffic Manual recommends that leading pedestrian intervals be paired with accessible pedestrian signals to support pedestrians with vision impairments.
Additionally, traffic signal technology and wiring must be capable of supporting advanced timing.
Staff say that 287 intersections across the city lack both accessible pedestrian signals and the equipment required to support leading pedestrian intervals and 98 have accessible pedestrian signals but lack capable traffic signal equipment.
Staff say that installing accessible pedestrian signals and accessibility upgrades such as tactile walking surface indicators typically carries an average cost of $60,000 per intersection.
Meanwhile, if an intersection requires upgrades to accessibility measures and new equipment for leading pedestrian intervals, then the estimated cost per intersection rises to $90,000.
Staff’s new guideline establishes that leading pedestrian intervals should be automatically installed in Business Improvement Areas, hospital zones, around major education institutions, and “near significant pedestrian or vulnerable user generators like schools and seniors’ facilities.”
All other locations will be determined using a scoring system that evaluates pedestrian volume, turning vehicle volume, collision history, proximity to vulnerable users, and intersection complexity.
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
