ANTIGONISH, N.S. — ANTIGONISH COUNTY - Deputy Warden Hughie Stewart, no doubt, wishes his prediction had been incorrect.
In a Dec. 16 meeting between officials from the Municipality of the County of Antigonish and representatives of the Nova Scotia Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal, the veteran councillor warned there would be another collision at the much-talked about Beech Hill Road-Highway 4 intersection, unless immediate safety measures were taken.
Approximately four hours later, it happened.
Although no one was seriously injured, the accident only heightened the concern of municipal officials regarding the roadway, which has been the location of three collisions this month - one which claimed the life of a 41-year-old man from Toronto.
"It is ridiculous," Stewart said during a discussion of the situation at council's regular monthly meeting one day later (Dec. 17).
He noted the municipality had suggested some "simple things" that could help alleviate - at least in the short-term - what it believes is a dangerous situation.
At the close of an emergency meeting one week earlier (Dec. 9), council approved a resolution calling for TIR to take "immediate action."
The resolution included a call for the provincial department to make the intersection a four-way stop, using portable signals for the interim; reduce the speed limit approaching the intersection with warning signage; and install rumble strips in all directions approaching the intersection.
After the session with TIR representatives, Warden Owen McCarron said they were encouraged their suggestions would be implemented, including the call for temporary four-way traffic lights.
"We left the meeting feeling pretty confident that our message was being heard, and then to get an email back today (Dec. 17) indicating that they (TIR) are prepared to make some; possibly reduce the speed zones and include some rumble strips, but maybe not until into the new year," the warden told reporters after the regular monthly meeting.
"This certainly goes completely against what council's wishes were."
McCarron added council wants "something more immediate."
He noted TIR officials also said they are considering adding a sign indicating 'through traffic does not stop.'
"We are concerned about that (sign) ... it is a mixed message at that intersection now and we think that would make it worse," McCarron said.
Coun. Bill MacFarlane, who represents the area where the intersection is located, added that type of sign would "only add immensely to the confusion."
He described the plan to possibly reduce the speed limit as a "small step forward."
Coun. John Dunbar said "speed is the big thing," noting he could not understand why the limit - with the required signs - could not be reduced right away.
Coun. Neil Corbett said he is hearing from people that it is "just human error" and there are no issues, when it comes to the mishaps.
"It has to be more than that - there is too much happening at that intersection," he added.
McCarron noted, in recent days, he had spoken with a couple people who were involved in two of the December accidents.
"Both those individuals, who were fortunate enough to walk away, indicated that lights need to be there, need to be installed," he said.
"We just don't understand the resistence from some officials with TIR to putting signalized lights at that intersection."
McCarron continued by rattling off other spots along that roadway through Antigonish County that have four-way traffic lights.
He suggested that is a measure that could also be completed sooner rather than later.
"Emergency situations - they can implement that quickly at a lot of construction sites across the province," McCarron said.
On a recent Sunday afternoon, the Antigonish RCMP placed a member at the intersection. During the span of a couple hours, they ticketed eight motorists for rolling through a stop sign.
McCarron suggested drivers would be less prone to doing that at an intersection with traffic lights.
'Only going to get worse'
"Where's Randy Delorey?" Stewart asked, while outlining what he sees as a lack of support from the Antigonish MLA.
He made the plea to the provincial health minister "to come and help us."
Stewart offered the same suggestion to TIR minister and Guysborough Eastern Shore Tracadie MLA Lloyd Hines, who represents an eastern portion of the municipality at the provinicial level.
"They are making decisions from their desks," Stewart said.
He added the provincial ministers are not heeding their message.
"They need to come and experience what we are seeing, what our residents are going through," Stewart said.
Council decided to ask for an "immediate" meeting with Delorey and Hines.
"Because ... we are very upset. We gave what we thought was a reasonable solution - in the interim, until a longer-term solution can be figured out for that intersection," McCarron said.
He added, "we are getting the phone calls daily."
"We were hoping that this would get resolved sooner ... it is a dangerous intersection, and we have been reiterating that for the past two years," McCarron continued.
County council started raising the issue with TIR officials as far back as September 2017, which led to the province pledging to carry out a traffic study on the intersection.
"We have been told that it is done - we only found out that it is done through a media person from TIR. We haven't physically seen the report," McCarron said.
There was no word, as of press time, if and when a meeting with the provincial ministers would take place.
"Council is upset by this and our community is upset; our community is fearful," McCarron said.
He described the current situation as "unacceptable."
"And it is only going to get worse," McCarron said.
