Shawville plans to go ahead with unauthorized crosswalk signage near PHS

Shawville plans to go ahead with unauthorized crosswalk signage near PHS

At the MRC Pontiac council of mayors meeting on April 17, the public heard from a local youth, Sid Sharpe, about a long-standing safety issue at a busy pedestrian crossing.

In Shawville, what’s known as rue Centre is also a provincial highway, Rte. 303 N, a high-traffic route transecting the entire town. Its intersection with the PPJ trail is well used by pedestrians, cyclists and students heading to and from Pontiac High School. Currently, it’s marked with a painted crosswalk and some rudimentary signage, but Sharpe, who uses a mobility scooter, said that many times, motorists don’t respect pedestrian’s right of way.

This is the second time that the council has heard from Sharpe on this issue: as a member of the MRC Youth Council, they appealed to the MRC for better signage at a meeting back in June 2023. Shawville Mayor Bill McCleary said that they’ve had an ongoing back and forth with representatives from the Ministry of Transport about adding flashing lights or other options, but he said the talks have been fruitless.  He said there were signs added, but he didn’t think they were sufficient. He said that they plan to go ahead with adding signs with lights that flash at a push of a button, and “beg forgiveness” from the MTQ.

The town is planning to install similar signs on rue Clarendon near Mill Dam Park, the cost of which can be covered by grant funding since it’s a municipal street. McCleary said that they will pay for the ones on rue Centre out of pocket and estimated that they were around $5,000 a piece.