Adam: Tim Tierney should know better than to mess with road pylons
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The two east-end Ottawa councillors took matters (law?) into their own hands out of frustration at unannounced road and ramp closures on Highway 174 that they say caused traffic chaos. Roads and ramps east of St. Laurent Boulevard on the 174 have been routinely closed during Stage 2 LRT east extension apparently without proper notice, and this has riled residents. The councillors claim the cones were left blocking roads even when construction was already completed. 'I know that brings a lot of discussion about (safety),' Teirney said of his action. 'If I can open up a lane of traffic seven or eight hours in advance of the next crew coming to move those cones, I'm just going to do it. It's sad when a councillor physically has to do it.'
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So, what we've come to is that councillors can take it upon themselves to throw cones off roads if they feel the pylons don't belong there. And Luloff agrees: 'When they make these changes without any notice, there's very few viable routes for us to get into the core or move about the city. What are you supposed to do?'
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Go rogue and throw cones off the roads, of course.
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But then, what happens if there is a serious accident on the arbitrarily re-opened roads? Who takes the blame? The city, the contractor or the councillors who took matters into their own hands?
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When I read the story in the Citizen, I wondered if you or I pulled that kind of stunt on a public road, would we find ourselves on the front page of the Citizen or in the back of a police cruiser being interrogated for, say, vandalism? But we are not Tierney and Luloff, are we?
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Lane closures are happening all over the city as the construction season kicks into full gear. You'll find major roads closed, and often access to malls blocked. It can be frustrating, and it may well be that the extent of the problem in the east end is much worse. Commuters sitting in traffic for hours unnecessarily is not fun. The councillors are right to be frustrated at OC Transpo and the contractor, and right to demand better. Any contractor of a major road project should have the sensibility to understand the importance of putting up proper signs about road closures so commuters can plan their routes ahead of time. And if an LRT contractor is failing in its duty, OC Transpo should have stepped in much earlier to fix the problem.
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But if the closures were causing chaos, as the councillors say, it is surprising that the issue was not raised at Transportation Committee, Transit Commission or council itself for remedy.
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OC Transpo general manager Renee Amilcar has apologized for a Montreal Road ramp closure that happened without proper notice, and the contractor has promised it won't happen again.
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Tierney and Luloff are right to be frustrated and angry, but that is no license to arbitrarily remove cones because they feel the pylons shouldn't be there. They should know better. It sets a bad precedent. The summer months are a time for road construction, which comes with high frustration—from commuters who have to put up with detours to businesses that are losing customers. But we don't want other people to think they can also take matters into their own hands and start removing inconvenient pylons.
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4 days ago
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Adam: Tim Tierney should know better than to mess with road pylons
Ottawa councillor Tim Tierney turned into a vigilante last week when he took the extraordinary step of tossing construction cones off city roads because they blocked traffic. Comrade-in-arms Coun. Matt Luloff was by his side in this escapade. Article content The two east-end Ottawa councillors took matters (law?) into their own hands out of frustration at unannounced road and ramp closures on Highway 174 that they say caused traffic chaos. Roads and ramps east of St. Laurent Boulevard on the 174 have been routinely closed during Stage 2 LRT east extension apparently without proper notice, and this has riled residents. The councillors claim the cones were left blocking roads even when construction was already completed. 'I know that brings a lot of discussion about (safety),' Teirney said of his action. 'If I can open up a lane of traffic seven or eight hours in advance of the next crew coming to move those cones, I'm just going to do it. It's sad when a councillor physically has to do it.' Article content Article content Article content So, what we've come to is that councillors can take it upon themselves to throw cones off roads if they feel the pylons don't belong there. And Luloff agrees: 'When they make these changes without any notice, there's very few viable routes for us to get into the core or move about the city. What are you supposed to do?' Article content Go rogue and throw cones off the roads, of course. Article content But then, what happens if there is a serious accident on the arbitrarily re-opened roads? Who takes the blame? The city, the contractor or the councillors who took matters into their own hands? Article content When I read the story in the Citizen, I wondered if you or I pulled that kind of stunt on a public road, would we find ourselves on the front page of the Citizen or in the back of a police cruiser being interrogated for, say, vandalism? But we are not Tierney and Luloff, are we? Article content Lane closures are happening all over the city as the construction season kicks into full gear. You'll find major roads closed, and often access to malls blocked. It can be frustrating, and it may well be that the extent of the problem in the east end is much worse. Commuters sitting in traffic for hours unnecessarily is not fun. The councillors are right to be frustrated at OC Transpo and the contractor, and right to demand better. Any contractor of a major road project should have the sensibility to understand the importance of putting up proper signs about road closures so commuters can plan their routes ahead of time. And if an LRT contractor is failing in its duty, OC Transpo should have stepped in much earlier to fix the problem. Article content Article content But if the closures were causing chaos, as the councillors say, it is surprising that the issue was not raised at Transportation Committee, Transit Commission or council itself for remedy. Article content OC Transpo general manager Renee Amilcar has apologized for a Montreal Road ramp closure that happened without proper notice, and the contractor has promised it won't happen again. Article content Tierney and Luloff are right to be frustrated and angry, but that is no license to arbitrarily remove cones because they feel the pylons shouldn't be there. They should know better. It sets a bad precedent. The summer months are a time for road construction, which comes with high frustration—from commuters who have to put up with detours to businesses that are losing customers. But we don't want other people to think they can also take matters into their own hands and start removing inconvenient pylons.
