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The Oakville Beaver, F rida y M a rc h 8, 2002 - 1 1 Oakville will test fluorescent school signs By Angela Blackburn OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF % A pilot project will test fluorescent yel low-green school signs over the tradition al blue-and-white in the area of Sheridan, Holy Family and Falgarwood schools. Town council has approved the pilot project that will cost less than $2,000 from the 2002 budget. Upwards of two dozen blue-and-white school signs should be replaced with their fluorescent cousins by late April. Ward 6 Councillor Janice Wright pushed for the project even though public works staff aren't convinced the fluores cent signs work better. Last fall, Wright called for replacing all the town's blue-and-white school signs with fluorescent signs. It was headed for rejection at the Town's Community Services Committee when Wright came to the rescue by asking for more study. The issue returned to the committee, again headed for rejection, when Wright won support for the pilot. Wright believes the fluorescent yel low-green school signs are better. She learned of the new signs through the Ward 5 and 6 Halton Regional Police/Community Liaison Committee. It was also through that committee that the pilot project area was chosen. "It has been identified as a problem area" said Wright. "It's also ideal because the three schools are so close together." The councillor admitted she was sur prised staff opposed the sign replacement because she said she's seen "a tremendous amount of evidence" they do work. Now the proof will be in the pilot proj ect. Traffic engineers will do a "before" study of the area in early April, said Wright. Then the signs will be replaced and the situation will be studied again for "after" results a year later. The fluorescent signs are more expen sive. To replace Oakville's 325 blue-andwhite school signs with the fluorescent mod els would cost $32^500 -- $100 per sign. It would also cost $3,000 annually in maintenance, because the signs are higher maintenance and they have a seven-year life span instead of 10, like their blue-andwhite counteiparts. The school signs notify motorists of school areas and school crossings. Ontario rules still call for the blue-andwhite signs after a provincial review said the fluorescent signs may detract from the other current uses of fluorescent materials -- traffic vests, school children's attire, and use on slow moving maintenance vehicles. And, since the fluorescent signs are three to 11 times brighter, they could over power school speed limit signs -- which Ontario's Highway Traffic Act says must be blue-and-white. In 1999, Canadian national standards for school areas on federal roads adopted the fluorescent signs. Waterloo, Niagara, Milton and Halton Hills use the fluorescent signs. Mississauga and Brampton use the blueand-white signs on city streets. Peel Region uses the fluorescent sigfts on regional roads. Burlington has one fluorescent sign on New Street at Walker's Line. Toronto and Hamilton are phasing in the fluorescent signs in a replacement pro gram. siS* MADE IN ITALY ,,3f0r$Q999 SHIRTS sum ,d , 7 DESIGNER TM ,,$Q Q99 s u n s .w y y DESIGNER f r o m Q99 JACKETS w 4 7 8] M A D EIN IT A L Y $0099 W 00LC0ATS ««r 7 y B E STQ U A L IT Y ,, M 099 PAN TS w L7 STORE CLOSES MARCH 30th OAKVILLE/MISSISSAUGA Winston Gate Power C tr. (905) 829-9024 N E X T TO P IE R O N E BAUM LER H U G OB O S S V E R A