As of September, the city had already spent about $234,000 to replace more than 130 of roughly 360 signs near elementary schools in the last two years in Calgary, Alta. Photo ©dzain/courtesy Bigstockphoto.com
More than a third of pedestrian signs placed by the City of Calgary around elementary schools have been damaged, forcing the city to review their placement. Though the signs have proven effective, the cost of replacing damaged ones is high.
According to CBC News, each sign costs about $650 to replace. As of September, the city had already spent about $234,000 to replace more than 130 of roughly 360 signs near elementary schools in the last two years in Calgary, Alta. While some signs were run over, others have been intentionally damaged.
The parking crunch created by busy student pick-up and drop-off times around schools is one reason the City believes is leading to signs being run down. Tony Churchill, the City’s senior leader of mobility safety, told CBC News that drivers face difficulty in navigating tight spaces during these busy times. “We know that there’s lots of parking and double parking around schools unfortunately, so that may be contributing to there being tighter space and vehicles driving over these devices,” Churchill said.
Therefore, the city is considering moving the signs or finding better ways to protect them. Another possible solution is stricter restrictions on parking in some locations. “We may be looking at physically restricting some parking with curb extensions just to make sure that we have better compliance and so that people can actually navigate around these devices,” Churchill told CBC News.
Where there is evidence of signs being intentionally hit, the City may opt for a “more solid solution like a median with a regular pedestrian sign”. Churchill said the signs have “proven to be effective in getting drivers to notice school zones and crosswalks”, and that the repair costs are “low compared to the harm that would be caused by a pedestrian being hit”.
The signs were installed in a traffic safety pilot project during the 2020-21 school year. According to CBC News, the City partnered with the University of Calgary to study whether in-street pedestrian signs would reduce drivers’ speed and encourage more people to walk or bike.
