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3 | O akville B eaver | T hursday,F ebruary 25,2021 insidehalton.com $79 Over 120,000 satisfied custOmers 9 Locations to serve you better Heating & Cooling www.aireonewest.ca high efficiency central air & furnace *Call for Details *Call for Details FURNACE DIAGNOSTIC SPECIAL *Call for Details $49$49 * Starting from Starting from $2799$2799 * 10 Year Factory Warranty 10 Year Factory Warranty $1/DAY OAC* AIRE ONE MADNEss sAlE!AIRE ONE MADNEss sAlE! FURNACE CLEANING SPECIAL 95.5%EFF. 95.5%EFF. $59 /MONTH OAC* NO PAYMENT, NO INTEREST!* $4999 *$4999 *Call for Details 79$79$79 * OAKVILLE 905-849-4998 1-888-827-2665 $1000 Off hi-efficiency furnace 10 Y Let's Connect A Delmanor Resident. Photo taken prior to COVID. delmanor.com Virtual Tours Available. Call to Discover The Delmanor Difference. (905) 469-3232 1459 Nottinghill Gate, Oakville Oakville councillors are hoping to slow things down on local roads with the major- ity voting to drop speed limits on residen- tial streets to 40 km/h. What? When did this happen? Thirteen of 15 councillors voted for the speed-limit reduction during their Jan. 25 council meeting. The plan will see speed limits on all local and minor collector roads (residential streets) fall to 40 km/h in two to three years. Town staff have been directed to report back to council with an implementation plan in September 2021. Ward 6 Couns. Tom Adams and Natalia Lishchyna voted against the motion. OK, so the speed limit hasn't actually changed yet. Why is this happening? The motion to reduce the speed limit was brought forward by Ward 1 Coun. Sean O'Meara. He noted reducing the speed limit on these streets would ultimately save lives. "The probability of a fatality is directly linked to speed. A pedestrian struck at 50 km/h has less than a 20 per cent chance of survival, and that changes to 50 per cent at 40 to 45 km/h and a 90 per cent change of sur- vival at 30 km/h," said O'Meara. "The reduction in speed also prevents colli- sions from occurring. It is estimated that for every 1.6 km/h in speed reduced, the fre- quency of a pedestrian/motor vehicle colli- sion is reduced by five per cent." O'Meara went on to note that a conversation needs to begin with drivers that residential neighbourhoods must be livable and safe. Who else is on board with this? Representatives from the West River Resi- dents' Association, the Joshua Creek Resi- dents' Association, the Trafalgar Chartwell Residents' Association and the Chartwell Maple Grove Residents' Association all spoke during the meeting, noting speeding is an issue in their areas. All expressed support for the speed-limit re- duction, though some want it to happen sooner. In a report presented to council, town staff said there is an increased demand from resi- dents for town staff to address safety con- cerns related to speeding on town roads. I heard the town carried out a 40 km/h pilot project in a couple areas. What happened with that? The 40 km/h signs were installed at entry/ exit points to the Heritage Way area on March 2, 2020, and at similar points in the West River area on Oct. 25, 2019. Speed surveys were then conducted in these areas from Oct. 28 to 30, 2020. Town staff concluded the implementation of neighbourhood 40 km/h speed zones did not achieve consistent operating speed re- ductions. I'll bite. Why move ahead with this if the signs didn't reduce vehicle speed? West River Residents' Association Presi- dent Ted Haugen argued during the meet- ing that the signs were not in ideal loca- tions. O'Meara said the brief speed surveys were not enough to determine whether the pilot had been effective. He also noted signs will not be the only change made, with the motion calling for the speed limit to be reduced in conjunc- tion with a comprehensive education pro- gram, assistance from Halton police and any other complimentary measures deemed necessary. What is all this going to cost? That figure is currently unknown. What did the mayor have to say about this? Oakville Mayor Rob Burton said council made history with its vote. "The single longest-running issue for resi- dents in my 27 years of life here in Oakville has finally been faced and actually dealt with," he said. "I do hope for success in the measures we are contemplating." NEWS COUNCIL VOTES TO REDUCE SPEED LIMIT ON RESIDENTIAL ROADS DAVID LEA dlea@metroland.com Oakville council has voted to reduce the speed limit on all residential roads to 40 km/h, as seen on Bridge Road near Bronte Road. Graham Paine/Metroland