A devastating crash April 28 on Lougheed Highway that left three people dead is once again highlighting the dangers associated with the narrow stretch of road.
Hemmed in by the CP Rail tracks to the east and the large retaining walls along the Riverview Hospital lands to the west, a major engineering solution could be difficult to achieve in the short term, said Dan Mooney, Coquitlam’s manager of transportation.
But one concept that has been recently floated could be the answer to improving safety in the area, he said.
Mooney outlined a proposal that would see Lougheed gradually elevate to the point that, by the time it hits the Riverview stretch, it is level with the top of the retaining wall. To meet the highway, Pitt River Road would have a ramp over the train tracks, eliminating the need for an at-grade rail crossing, he added.
“These are all concept discussions,” he told The Tri-City News. “It is all subject to the master plan land uses.”
If the plan were ever to go forward, it would improve safety along the corridor, increase access to Riverview and allow trains to move through the area unimpeded by traffic.
“If enough people have common interests, I think there is a solution that can be had,” he said. “It is uneconomical for any one of the parties to achieve their objectives on their own. If we all contribute a portion… my hope is we will see a solution.”
Mooney outlined many of the steps the city has taken to improve safety along the Lougheed Highway over the years.
In 2010, repaving with skid-resistant blacktop helped remove ruts in the road while median rumble strips were added in 2011 along with an increased number of surface reflectors. Pullouts have also been built to allow the RCMP to work safely on speed enforcement and a red-light camera has been mounted at Pitt River and Lougheed.
But a barrier between opposing lanes is not possible without widening the road, a difficult feat in the narrow Riverview stretch.
“We have looked at putting a divider down the road,” he said. “There just isn’t the width.”
He said incidents like last month’s crash weigh heavily on city engineering staff, who are eager to receive the RCMP report and learn more about what led up to the incident.
So far, investigators have not released many details of the circumstances surrounding the collision, which occurred north of Pitt River Road and involved three vehicles. A 30-year-old woman, who has not been identified, was killed in one vehicle, while two girls who were cousins — Tyler Mollie Wong Hernandez, 3, and Ella Reese Hernandez, 9 — died in another.
A YouCaring.com crowdfunding page was setup by friends and families and as of The Tri-City News’ deadline Tuesday had reached $72,963, more than triple the goal of $20,000.
Anyone who witnessed the collision — or has dash-cam video that recorded the accident or the accident scene — is asked to contact the Coquitlam RCMP Traffic Services at 604-945-1550 (quote file number 2017-12620).
@gmckennaTC
