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New traffic light for Alta Lake Road

Mayor expects installation to be completed this year to improve pedestrian safety
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Pedestrians at Alta Lake Road will soon be able to cross Highway 99 with more than just prayer, fast feet and good timing. A traffic light is slated for installation at the intersection between Spring Creek Drive and Bayshores.

The intersection currently features a bus stop on the northbound side of the highway. There isn't a crosswalk so pedestrians coming from Alta Lake Road are forced to scramble across the highway between breaks in traffic to get to the bus stop.

Whistler Mayor Nancy Wilhelm-Morden announced the plans to install the traffic light in a post on her Facebook page in December.

"I've been advised that a pedestrian-activated traffic light at the corner of Alta Lake Road and Highway 99 has been approved," Wilhelm-Morden wrote.

She said in an interview this week that the current situation is dangerous with residents from Tamarisk and the other residential developments in the area running across Highway 99 to get to the bus stop on the other side of the highway in an area where the speed limit is 80 kilometres per hour.

"It is a safety issue," she said.

The project is in the early planning stages with the Resort Municipality of Whistler taking the lead with support from the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.

"We will be cost sharing with the ministry," said Wilhelm-Morden. "As far as the actual costs and when it will happen and all of that, that's all part of the budget process."

While the timeframe hasn't been finalized Wilhelm-Morden expects the new light to be installed in the summer.

"It is something we've requested, they've approved, so it's just a case of getting it done," said Wilhelm-Morden.

She noted that some people posted on her Facebook page that the installation of the traffic light will further disrupt the flow of traffic on the highway. According to the mayor, the safety issue at the intersection needs to be addressed and the installation of the traffic light is the solution.