Sexsmith Rd and Reid's Corner daily Clusterduck

[GoStumpy]

Sexsmsith road has become a complete nightmare since the extra set of traffic lights were installed halfway down Sexsmith. It was always a busy road but now that those new lights are there, it makes the whole thing much worse.
The whole road is bumper to bumper all the way down and it sometimes starts up by Dr Knox school which is insane. Ever since they put the new road into the Sol Terra Ranch subdivision which goes up and over the mountain to UBCO it’s been a joke.
Whoever decided to put that main thoroughfare to UBCO through a residential housing area was crazy.
Add the fact that the highway is now a construction site and it makes for a nightmare of a journey at school time and around 4:30pm to 6pm when everybody is leaving work.
I was trying to turn left out of the new road at the new set of lights but I was completely unable to join Sexsmith because of the gridlock. Due to driving attitudes in this town nobody will let you into merge into the traffic. So after waiting for 10 minutes I gave up, turned right and had to go around the long way to get to the highway.
It’s concerning when you see all the construction going on around town with all the condos and townhouses being built, our road infrastructure already can’t cope.
- Mike Ashley (Letters)

This letter makes NO sense, unless the driver has JUST started driving Sexsmith and hasn't realized that it has been backing up the same amount for YEARS, and the new traffic light has NOTHING TO DO with the backup, it is solid all the way to the highway. If the gridlock goes from Hwy97 to Longhill Rd, how the heck do you try to blame a random light in the middle of the gridlock?

The problem is the timing of the turn light at the highway at Sexsmith and Hwy97. They need a longer turn lane, and a longer advanced green. LOTS of trucking traffic through here, so quite often only 5-8 cars MAX can get through an advanced green, and then the last 2 cars maybe can make it through when the light turns yellow.

That, and because Sexsmith is only 1 lane, ALL traffic has to wait for those 5-8 cars MAX at the advanced green unless they drive illegally on the shoulder past Tim Hortons to try and drive straight through the intersection. It's a complete cluster$#% every single day, most of the day.

The left turn lane from Hwy97 onto Sexsmith also needs to be longer, for some reason it was shortened about 6 months ago when they really ramped up construction around there, before you could empty 3/4 of the turn lane each light, and now you only get again, 5-8 cars MAX. That means 3-4 lights to empty the turn lane, and at some times of the day it backs up all the way down the highway, again preventing cars that are travelling straight through to be able to move, and now EVERYBODY waits for that advanced green.

Another intersection that is getting screwed is the new Rutland Rd and Old Vernon Rd. Rutland Rd has the majority of the traffic, yet Old Vernon Rd has the straight through, and everyone on Rutland Rd has a stop sign? NO! Old Vernon Rd should have the stop sign!! Or a 4-way stop!! This is REDICULOUS that all Rutland Rd traffic has to sit and wait while the little bit of traffic on Old Vernon Rd, spaced out, keeps traffic at a standstill.

Edwards was mentioned in another letter:

The city should have improved Edwards intersection with a few painted lines as it's a nightmare with people trying to turn and cars which are going straight through the intersection.

Go there after 9 a.m,  you will see what I mean.

The city should have done a minor upgrade of painted lines etc. before closing old Vernon road and sending all the Traffic to Edwards.

I hate to see anyone get hurt from this poorly planned intersection.
Martin Gyurcsek

This absolutely nails it. Everyone sick and tired of waiting for the Sexsmith intersection can easily jump on Adams Rd, turn at Pinto Rd, and funnel themselves to this intersection that ordinarily has very little traffic, but has ALWAYS had the issue of EVERYONE waiting for the one guy that's turning left... because you know it's illegal to go around more than 1 car. It's a crazy dangerous intersection because when that one car turns, the guy behind him guns it to go straight through, but coming the opposite way there's a large amount of trucking traffic that might have already started turning left onto Hwy97 from the Acland side of Edwards. It's another cluster$A%$ intersection that could be remedied by a left turn lane and a straight through/right turn lane. Then at least you would KNOW who is turning left and who is going straight. Right now it's a guessing game.

Can you tell I deal with these intersections dozens of times a day?

[voice of reason]

turning on to edwards from the highway is taking your life in your own hands.i work in that area and have seen dozens of serious accidents over the years.mostly t-bones.the entire area is an absolute disaster right now due to construction.the line up at adams and edwards in the mornings backs traffic up in all directions

[AtticSalt]

Bah ha..C.K.O. out road sweeping this am so they can paint new road lines up past the pub on east Kelowna road.... only to dig it all up next year for the so called water integration fiasco. ..maybe they had their maps upside down?

[643dpb]

This letter makes NO sense, unless the driver has JUST started driving Sexsmith and hasn't realized that it has been backing up the same amount for YEARS, and the new traffic light has NOTHING TO DO with the backup, it is solid all the way to the highway. If the gridlock goes from Hwy97 to Longhill Rd, how the heck do you try to blame a random light in the middle of the gridlock?

I have been driving this route for 6 years now, I drive over Dilworth to Longhill then onto Sexsmith. In this 6 years, I have only been backed up to Longhill road maybe once or twice, generally because of an accident or something.

Since the September long weekend, it has been backed up halfway up Longhill and up Valley road every day.

I hope this is only temporary due to construction, but still a pain in the *bleep*. I can only see the congestion all over the city getting worse and worse. Densify!

[GoStumpy]

Definitely due to construction, it's pretty much been since they narrowed the through and turn lanes where Sexsmith meets Hwy97. Now barely anybody can make it through the turn light and because the turn lane is so short it backs up into the through lane meaning EVERYBODY waits for the turn lane, which essentially backs up all the way to Longhill. It's only moving at all because of the people that turn at Arab, Pinto, and Adams Rd.

[643dpb]

I guess that road up to UBC-O is closed right now too, which probably compounds the problem a little more.

I couldn't imagine driving from West Kelowna up to that area for work every day!

[vinnied]

I guess that road up to UBC-O is closed right now too, which probably compounds the problem a little more.

I couldn't imagine driving from West Kelowna up to that area for work every day!

If the road up to UBCO is closed what the heck was the point of the new traffic lights on sexsmith?

[643dpb]

If the road up to UBCO is closed what the heck was the point of the new traffic lights on sexsmith?

I think the new John Hindle Drive road construction from North Glenmore has something to do with this closure, it's only temporary due to construction.

[voice of reason]

I guess that road up to UBC-O is closed right now too, which probably compounds the problem a little more.

I couldn't imagine driving from West Kelowna up to that area for work every day!

i been driving from west kelowna up thru there for 10 years

[643dpb]

i been driving from west kelowna up thru there for 10 years

Wow, that's impressive, you must have great patience, assuming you drive this route daily? It's generally only this bad during rush hour work traffic.

[gardengirl]

I guess that road up to UBC-O is closed right now too, which probably compounds the problem a little more.

I couldn't imagine driving from West Kelowna up to that area for work every day!

Glenrosa to Sexsmith every day. It is horrible. Can take an hour or more on a bad day.

[voice of reason]

fortunately i developed patience during the years of traffic problems on the westside while they built the overpasses

[GoStumpy]

I have also been driving from Westbank to Sexsmith daily for 10 years now

[gjohns87]

I drive this route everyday, I've adjusted my travel time to travel on Sexsmith around 720am and there are maybe 4 cars at the lights at Sexsmith and Hwy 97.. if you can, leave earlier and save the headache.

[BGrigg07]

We must share the road at about the same time. In the mornings it isn't too bad, but the end of the day is terrible. I work at a place on Campion and the new light actually makes it easier for me to get home.