An upgrade to the intersection at Prairie Valley Road and Victoria Road South will greatly improve the flow of traffic in the area.
For years, the intersection — a four-way stop — has been a congested corner, with traffic lined up in all directions during the busiest periods weekday mornings and afternoons. The morning rush is often a morning wait.
A four-way stop is no longer an adequate traffic control at this intersection.
The two roads are both heavily travelled and Prairie Valley Road is designated a highway.
In addition, there are two schools near the intersection, resulting in even more traffic at the start and end of the school day.
There was no way this project could have been delayed any longer.
In addition to the intersection work and a storm water diversion project on Prairie Creek, the work will also include the addition of sidewalks and bike lanes on part of the road.
With the volume of traffic along Prairie Valley Road, sidewalks and bike lanes become increasingly important.
Of course a project of this magnitude comes at a price. The costs are calculated at $3.8 million and the municipality has approved short-term borrowing of up to $1 million.
In order to repay the borrowed money without raising taxes, other projects will be postponed.
While it is often possible to tighten the belt and put off a project for a short time, the danger is that the short-term delays can grow into long-term delays.
Then, when the work can be postponed no longer, the costs may easily be much greater than if the work had been done earlier.
While we can appreciate efforts to keep taxes low, it is important to be flexible enough to take on upgrades when they are necessary.