A “nightmare” intersection, which has residents afraid to leave their suburb has become the focal point for local politicians and City officials as the challenge of adapting Canning’s major roads to accommodate population growth continues.
Canning Vale residents Pam and Peter White got in contact with Member for Jandakot Yaz Mubarakai to discuss the intersection at Ranford Road, Banksia Esplanade and Queensgate Drive, which they say has become impossible to traverse since the population has expanded and bus lanes were put in.
It’s escalated as the whole precinct has grown, and it’s been exponential growth because it’s gone from a quiet rural area to a very busy suburbia in a relatively short period of time,” Mr White said.
This point in particular is a danger zone.
“We don’t go out there, we pull in sometimes when we have to but we don’t drive out, we just don’t risk it,” Ms White said.
“You can hear it during the summer: ‘bang’, every few minutes. There’s accidents constantly on this part of the road.”
“It looks simple, but it really isn’t,” Mr White said.
“There’s a bus lane that comes right across the road, which really exacerbates it. At peak hour it’s pretty much impossible to get across.”
The City of Canning and the Public Transport Authority began placing bus lanes on Ranford Road, between Bannister Road and Nicholson Road, in an attempt to alleviate traffic congestion.
Unfortunately it has partially backfired, with the lanes now obstructing traffic flow from branching roads.
Mr Mubarakai said he saw the need to remedy the problem as soon as he was contacted by the Whites.
“This is a growth corridor – with the growth of areas in Jandakot, we’ve seen places like Piara Waters and Harrisdale take shape so rapidly.
“Obviously that is going to have effects that we need to deal with,” he said.
“I think we’re all in a state of, ‘How do we keep up’? A lot of this, it’s us learning on our feet because every development, every idea and every location is going to be different.
“So when Pam and Peter came to me with this problem, it was a real priority because it gives us the opportunity to not only fix a serious community problem, but to work with other groups to see if we can’t work out a better general process when it comes to these types of developments.”
The City of Canning will be working with WA Police to monitor traffic flow through the area, and ensure lanes and entry and exit points for roads are clearly marked.
As the issue is monitored, the right-hand turn to Banksia Esplanade will be closed.
The closure will be re-assessed “in a few months’ time” according to the City.
