The northern road to safety

It’s been a waiting game for Temiskaming Shores Mayor Carman Kidd to make progress on improving traveller safety on Highway 11.

The notorious stretch of two-lane pavement between North Bay and the Tri-Towns has become a year-round regional issue for residents and businesses impacted by highway closures caused by serious motor vehicle accidents.

Last fall, Kidd received the collision statistics from the Ontario Provincial Police but is still waiting for them to set a meeting date with him to dive into the specifics of the report, particularly involving incidents with transport trucks.

The Highway 11 corridor through northeastern Ontario has become a major cross-Canada truck route, especially during the stormy winter months.

“They (drivers) like the flatter land north of Cochrane and they can make good time going across there,” said Kidd. “They don’t need to deal with the Sault Ste. Marie-Sudbury route where there’s snow squalls. This is the preferred route they would rather take.”

Some improvements have been made with additional passing lanes, but local lobbying for a four-lane divided highway is falling on deaf ears with the Ministry of Transportation (MTO), who contend there’s not enough traffic volume to warrant widening the highway.

Kidd wants answers if the amount of truck traffic is on the rise.

“I’ve been asking the MTO to give us those numbers and explain to us if it’s increasing. They have them, but they still don’t feel they’re getting anywhere close to the actual numbers that they need to sustain a four-lane highway. That’s the roadblock we ran into last summer when we met them.”

Highway collisions in recent years have impacted the lives of many Temiskaming residents, particularly prominent community figures who’ve been killed in car accidents.

But it’s also affected travellers sitting on the highway during closures. Going through Quebec is not always an option.

“It’s a major issue for people trying to travel (out of the area) for medical appointments and getting out down the highway,” said Kidd. “If you have a morning appointment, you’re not going to take a chance on being able to leave that same morning. You’re down the night before, and there are additional costs for hotels.”

Kidd had hoped to relay his concerns to Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown, but Brown, who toured the area in late February, never met with or extended an invitation to, the mayor.

Undaunted, Kidd is researching a European report on a three-lane highway system that might work in northeastern Ontario.

“That’s one idea we’re pushing as well.”