Creston residents got their first look at a proposal to realign the Pine Street intersection at Northwest Boulevard on April 11.
Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure representatives were on hand at the Creston Valley Chamber of Commerce to explain the proposal and answer questions.
“We plan to complete the design this year and proceed with construction in 2014,” project manager Tim Dyer said.
Representing the Town of Creston at the open house were Mayor Ron Toyota, engineering and public works director Iain Bell and engineering manager Colin Farynowski.
“This is a much-needed improvement that will provide a nice entry to the downtown core from the west,” Toyota said. “It gives us the opportunity do something attractive to welcome visitors.”
The proposed realignment involves acquiring small portions of property at each corner of the intersection in order to soften curves and make the crossing safe for pedestrians. A four-way traffic light will control the flow of vehicles and movement of pedestrians.
Dyer said the traffic light timing could be interrupted to allow immediate access of emergency vehicles coming out of the fire hall on 10th Avenue North.
In consultation with the Town of Creston last year, the ministry also considered making the intersection into a roundabout, allowing for traffic to move through without stoppages in any direction. Several impediments were eventually identified which ruled out the practicality of that design, though.
A roundabout could get jammed up when a train is on the tracks and vehicles are waiting to enter Railway Boulevard. Such an intersection also requires more space, which would have added significantly to the cost of the project, Dyer said.
Cost for the project is estimated to be $5 million, including the property acquisitions.