U-turns are prohibited at all signalized intersections in B.C.
So the city of Coquitlam is removing "No U-turn" signs from a dozen such intersections to reduce confusion.
Got it?
The city is mounting a campaign to stop people who take the illegal traffic shortcut. Part of the initiative is removing "no U-turn" signs to avoid confusion because some drivers assume that they can make U-turns at a light where there are no such signs.
One trouble spot is Lougheed Highway and Westwood Street, where, for years, risk-taking eastbound drivers have been making illegal U-turns to get into the Shell gas station located at the northwest corner.
Coquitlam's transportation manager, Dan Mooney, said people making illegal U-turns at the light are causing problems for southbound drivers turning right onto Lougheed from Westwood.
"It's one of the intersections where there are high numbers of crashes," he told The Tri-City News. "They're making a manoeuvre which the rest of the motorists aren't expecting and they they need a wide girth to make that U-turn."
The problem was identified when some residents complained, and the speculation is that the signs pre-date the signals but were never taken down. The city worked with ICBC and the RCMP before it decided to take action, Mooney said.
City crews will remove the "no U-turn" signs in the next couple of weeks. Besides being prohibited at signalized intersections anywhere in B.C., U-turns are also forbidden on a curve, near the crest of a hill, mid-block in a business district and, of course, where there's a sign.
If there are any left.
