Morinville plans to form a regional task force to get the province to build the Cardiff Corner overpass.
Town council gave an update on the proposed traffic lights at Cardiff Corner last Nov. 26. Those lights, pegged at $2 million, were announced Nov. 19 by the province as a temporary fix to the collision-prone intersection just south of town.
Following the update, council voted unanimously in support of a motion from Mayor Lisa Holmes to create a terms of reference for a Cardiff Road-Highway 2 task force to address issues at the intersection.
Council members met with Alberta Transportation staff on this issue during the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association meeting held Nov. 20 to 22.
Council heard that the province considered several alternatives to the traffic lights, Holmes said.
A plan to move the end of the northbound turning lane off the highway further east along Cardiff Road was rejected as it would cost $6.5 million – cash that would essentially be lost as this turnoff lane would not be a part of the future overpass.
They also thought about opening up a barricaded access to Highway 2 just north of the corner, Holmes continued, but found that would just move, not solve, the dangerous left-hand turn onto the highway from Cardiff. The move also would not meet provincial engineering standards. Closing the intersection was rejected due to the immense impact it would have on local residents and businesses.
Coun. Stephen Dafoe said that Alberta Transportation confirmed that they asked then-deputy mayor Holmes and then-mayor Paul Krauskopf to keep these alternatives secret until the lights were announced.
“Our CAO and our mayor and deputy mayor at the time did not lie about keeping the matter in confidence,” he said.
Council does not yet know how the lights (meant to be installed next year) will affect traffic flow, Holmes said, as the province is still working on the design. The province has said that the lights will be on a swivel, however, to accommodate tall or wide loads.
“This decision that Alberta Transportation has made is a fix for now,” Holmes said, but a temporary one. “We are not done with this decision.”
The town has received inquiries about the lights from places as far away as Westlock and Barrhead, Holmes said in an interview.
“We are stronger when we speak with one voice,” she said.
The proposed task force, if formed, will bring together local, municipal and provincial allies to create some key messages and push for construction of the Cardiff Corner overpass.
Debbie Oyarzun, the town’s chief administrative officer, said this coalition could also draw upon the expertise of the Capital Region Intersection Safety Partnership – a traffic safety group that includes St. Albert, Edmonton and Strathcona County.
The terms of reference were set to come to council sometime in the next few months. The lights are scheduled to be up and running by next summer.
