Rumble strips on "problematic" stretch of Lakeshore Road not safe for cyclists

The region has completed one of its promised steps intended to improve safety for drivers on the Lakeshore Road curve between Niven Road and Four Mile Creek.

Rumble strips have been added at the curve in the road to “alert drivers to the potential of leaving the road,” as explained by Frank Tassone, the region’s director of transportation services.

The problem, says cyclist Vince Mayne, is that the rumble strips have made that stretch decidedly unsafe for anyone cycling along that stretch of the curve.

Mayne reached out to The Local this week to say when he was riding his bike along Lakeshore Road last Sunday and passed the “problematic section of road between Four Mile Creek and Niven Road,” he was forced off the road into the ditch when a car passed him as he encountered the newly installed rumble strips.

“The strips are immediately to the right of the white line at the curve in the road,” he said, “and occupy almost all of the remaining road surface to the road's edge. The shoulder of the road is very narrow at this section and the ruts left by the rumble strips will cause a cyclist's flat tire.”

In making the decision to install the rumble strips, he said, the region “has done a huge disservice to area cyclists.”

He mentioned that when the safety review was published in The Local, Tassone said in deciding not to install a guard rail that there was a concern it would force cyclists to ride further off the shoulder, making it unsafe for them.

However, Mayne said, “there is no shoulder remaining on the road due to the rumble strips, and cyclists are forced to fight for a spot on the road with cars. That fight is sure to add to the death count on that section of road.”

Mayne said he has written to all the Niagara-on-the-Lake councillors questioning why they would agree to the roadside changes, knowing that wine tour cyclists frequent the road during the fall wine tour season.

He received an answer from Lord Mayor Gary Zalepa Saturday, who had reached out to Tassone. The regional director's response was that "Region Corridor Safety Staff have reviewed the letter and they are finalizing recommendations, in short we do expect to move forward with the installation of sharrows as well as signage as recommended under OTM (Ontario Transportation Ministry) for single file use of the travel lane between cyclists and drivers. This would be for the section where we recently installed the edge line rumble strips."

Sharrows are pavement markings that improve cycling safety on streets that are too narrow for traditional bike lanes. These markings indicate to drivers that the road is a preferred bicycle route, and that they should be prepared to share the road with cyclists.

Later this week, Mayne rode by again, and a pile of dirt he had seen there earlier had been levelled out and a piece of equipment that had been on the site is no longer there. "The soft clay base at the edge of the road is double jeopardy for a cyclist if forced onto it by a motorist,” he said.

Mayne belongs to a cycling group, and suggested a cycling advocacy group in the area is needed “to help local governments formulate practices more acceptable to cyclists.” 

Work to make that stretch of Lakehore Road safer for drivers began early in September with regional staff cutting down bushes along the side of the road. A regional safety review undertaken following the death of a young man early in the morning of June 5, after hitting a tree on Lakeshore Road — the same tree that was the site of a collision and death of a 49-year-old woman the morning of June 9, 2023 — had been completed.

That large, mature tree was removed last June, and the region said at the time it would look into what other safety measures might be appropriate, including installing a guard rail around the curve in the road.

In a memorandum dated Aug. 15 and sent to the town Frank Tassone, the region’s director of transportation services, said the road safety review, initiated “in response to multiple collisions in this area involving drivers leaving the road and striking nearby trees,” was finished. Tthe region had gained some understanding of why motorists have been leaving the travelled portion of the road, and then determined how best to address the cause. “We first considered how we might prevent drivers from leaving the road and then, if they did leave the road, what measures might reduce the risk of serous injury," the memorandum said.

In bold type, it states that based on the review, “Staff believe that speeding is a significant contributing factor for motorists leaving the road.”

The region has been asked by The Local since the review was made public about other possible contributing factors, such as alcohol, drugs or distracted driving, but was told that information has to come from the Niagara Regional Police, and isn’t made public. The Local also asked the police in June, following the most recent collision, about what was discovered during its investigation, but the answer was no information was available.

The report released by Tassone regarding safety measures to be implemented said it would not lower the speed limit. Instead, the plan was to install a speed display sign telling drivers how fast they are going, as well as ask Niagara Regional Police to conduct targeted speeding enforcement.

Also part of the plan to improve visibility at the curve is the addition of a flashing beacon to the existing ‘curve ahead sign,’ as well as installing horizontal chevrons, and trimming nearby foliage to ensure all signage is visible. “These measures aim to reduce speeding and improve visibility to mitigate the risk of motorists leaving the roadway,” the memorandum regarding the safety review said.

Two white oak trees on the north side of the curve, and one black walnut opposite the cemetery entrance, were also recommended to come down.