Airdrie has reinstated plans to install permanent traffic signals at Yankee Valley Boulevard and King’s Heights Gate after new traffic data and safety concerns prompted the city to reverse a previous decision that removed the project from the budget.
Reassessment after 40th Avenue interchange traffic study
The decision follows a May 7, 2024, council report that showed traffic signal warrants at the intersection had dropped significantly after the opening of the 40th Avenue interchange. At the time, the city opted to reallocate funding for new traffic signals to Main Street intersections instead, as they had higher traffic volumes.
"Post 40th Ave interchange opening, we re-examined any signal warrant that was on Yankee Valley Boulevard and 40th Avenue, given the opening of an interchange, and the signal warrant at King Heights gate and Yankee Valley Boulevard had dropped significantly below the threshold for a traffic signal being warranted," Andrew Dormer, Team Leader of Engineering Services told Discover Airdrie.
However, he noted that city officials had committed to continue to monitor the traffic signal warrant at those locations.
"...And also the traffic operations, including pedestrian safety and pedestrian numbers crossing those intersections. Since we've continued to do that since May of 2024 at Kings Heights Gate and Yankee Valley Boulevard, the signal increased from the last ones we did after the 40th opening."
Traffic volume reports from April 2024 showed a 19.7 per cent drop in eastbound traffic and a 15.9 per cent drop in westbound traffic on Yankee Valley Boulevard east of Highway 2. Similar declines were recorded west of Main Street.
However, Dormer said ongoing monitoring revealed a shift.
"And then there’s also road safety concerns with pedestrians and vulnerable road users, such as children crossing the five lanes of Yankee at that location," he said. "When we reviewed it in the full picture, as it were, we decided the best approach was to bring those signals back into the budget."
The project was officially added to the 2025 capital budget, which was passed late last year.
Funding and timeline for installation
The signals, approved in the city's 2025 capital budget, come with an estimated cost of $520,000, which includes engineering and a three per cent contingency fund, according to Andrew Dormer, Team Leader of Engineering Services. The city aims to have the signals installed within 16 months, ideally by the end of the 2025 construction season.
While the city’s public notice stated the signals will be installed within 16 months, Dormer confirmed that means they should be fully operational within that period, barring delays.
"Our intent is to install them within that 16 months, preferably within the 2025 construction season," Dormer said. "But some signal parts are long lead-time items, so getting them in before the end of the 2025 construction season might be tight."
Dormer said the 16-month timeline is standard for traffic signal projects.
"16 months also includes the time it takes us to design the signals and get them out to our contractor for pricing. And the physical installations also need modifications to the surface works around the intersection."
Temporary safety measures in place
While permanent signals are in the works, the city has introduced temporary measures to improve pedestrian safety at the intersection. According to the city’s public notice, these include:
- Lane adjustments, including one through lane in both westbound and eastbound directions.
- A shortened pedestrian crossing reduces the distance pedestrians need to travel.
- Improved sightlines, increasing visibility for both drivers and pedestrians.
"These temporary measures will be in place until traffic signals are installed within the next 16 months," the city said.
Main Street signals prioritized in 2024 budget shift
The 2024 traffic signal budget initially planned for Yankee Valley Boulevard and Kings Heights Gate was instead reallocated to Main Street at the South Towerlane entrance and Main Street at Elk Hill/Ridgegate Way to support the Airdrie Multi-Use Facility and Library opening in 2025.
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