Coalhurst Council hears traffic and pedestrian safety concerns

Posted on July 16, 2026 by Sunny South News

By Kristine Jean
Sunny South News

The Town of Coalhurst recently reviewed traffic and pedestrian safety measures following a recent incident involving a child who was struck by a vehicle while travelling to school.   

Council heard about those concerns after they were brought forward by Coalhurst Mayor Deb Florence and Coun. Lori Harasem at the July 7, Town of Coalhurst regular council meeting.  

Florence and Harasem asked administration to review the area in question, and provide council with information and potential recommendations regarding pedestrian and student safety. 

“When I was door knocking last year, I also heard quite a bit of concern on 51st Ave. about speeding on that roadway,” said Harasem, noting the high number of emails she recently received on the matter. She brought the issue forward at an appropriate time “to understand some of the history of what council knew” on the topic and “what had been done” with regards to it. 

In the Council Inquiry and Administrative Response report, presented at the July 7 meeting, administration was asked to review the location and surrounding traffic conditions, consult with the Town’s Community Peace Officer regarding traffic patterns, speeding concerns, driver behaviour, school zone compliance and potential enforcement considerations. In addition, identify any existing concerns related to crosswalks, signage, visibility, speed, traffic flow or school access and identify whether there are partnership opportunities with the school division, Alberta Transportation, RCMP or other agencies, if applicable. 

“I appreciate all the work that’s gone into the response from administration,” said Florence. “The intent of this was to ask if there are practical steps to take that we can do following an incident that understandably, was raised by the concerns in our community. 

“I think as an elected official, when residents come to us with concerns, I think it’s appropriate that we ask these kinds of questions,” she added, noting her appreciation for the review of the location, traffic conditions, and enforcement or partnership opportunities. “Even if the conclusion is that existing measures are generally appropriate, I think there’s value in taking time to review them after something happens or whether there’s traffic concerns or people are saying things from our community, and again, sometimes the outcome of an inquiry is confirmation that we’re already doing what we can.  I think this is valuable for council and for the community as well.”      

The report also noted the community feedback Council received regarding vehicle speeds, driver behaviour, U-turn activity near the school and commercial area, and the overall safety of pedestrians, particularly children travelling to and from school. 

“The recent collision involving a child has reinforced the importance of understanding whether additional measures should be considered to improve safety,” read the report, noting that administration undertook a comprehensive investigation into the area of 51st Ave. parallel to the Coalhurst Elementary School and 6th Street and 50th Ave., adjacent to the Community Centre and to the East of the Coalhurst Elementary School. 

Administration shared several key points and information found as a result of their investigation, noting “the Town implements a variety of measures to ensure the safety of all road and pedestrian users accessing not just school and playground areas, but all areas within Town.” 

Town staff also noted some additional, cost effective measures recently completed at the intersection of 6th Street and 50th Avenue that included changing the crosswalks to zebra crosswalks, to improve visiblability and there is a possibility of twinning the signage there as well.