The B.C. government appears committed to not committing to putting up an intersection camera in Salmon Arm.
The latest piece of correspondence related to the city’s ongoing pursuit of a camera at Alexander Street and the Trans-Canada Highway came to council in the form of a letter from Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure area manager Peter Gooch. The letter states the ministry would be pleased to assist in the camera’s implementation but its traffic safety branch has not yet been contacted regarding site selection.
“Once our traffic branch has a better understanding of how Alexander Street was selected, over other intersections along the arterial, they would be better prepared to provide comment on the city’s request for signage,” writes Gooch.
Coun. Debbie Cannon called the letter a disappointment, stating the city appears to be facing more bureaucracy and red tape.
“Maybe, after my third term of being on council, perhaps we might see an intersection camera,” said Cannon.
Coun. Alan Harrison commended Cannon for understanding Gooch’s letter, which left him with questions. City administrator Carl Bannister agreed the letter is worded awkwardly and guessed that, in his above comment, Gooch is saying the ministry doesn’t want to put a sign up until a camera is in place.
Harrison then asked if the ministry is looking for feedback on why Alexander was chosen.
“I mean, to me it would be pretty obvious that Alexander is the place where we would want it because of the pedestrian route there,” said Harrison. “Are they asking us for some input as to why we picked Alexander?”
Bannister said he thinks the ministry is expecting the city to do more work to show that a camera is warranted, and that it’s warranted at that intersection.
“The thing about that is that we have done lots, so I guess we will continue trying to let them know that,” said Bannister.
Harrison said he’s appreciated the work staff has done, and he suggested council bring this latest correspondence to the Union of B.C. Municipalities convention where they will meet with Solicitor General Shirley Bond.
“This has been going on for too long,” said Harrison. “If they don’t want to put a camera in, they should just say ‘no, we’re not going to do it.’ That’s the answer, OK, then I get it. But we said we’re going to pay for it, we’ve told them where we want it, we’ve done all the work. I’m okay with a straightforward kind of an answer, but I don’t think this is very straightforward.”
The same letter from Gooch also responds to a request for a reduced speed limit for transport trucks travelling into the downtown core.
Gooch says the ministry is unable to support a speed reduction to 30 km/h – ministry policy supports a 50 km/h minimum within a municipality.