It’s not the worst intersection in Chilliwack for vehicle crashes, but it’s in the top 10.
Just about everybody who regularly drives Vedder Road through Sardis has seen firetrucks and ambulances at the scene of the tricky South Sumas intersection.
The main problem many drivers complain about on social media is the lack of a left-turn lane for southbound traffic on to South Sumas and the newer residential neighbourhoods on the Tzeachten reserve.
“Based on weekly accidents occurring in this intersection, we are calling on the City of Chilliwack to implement a left turning light for the safety of all drivers and pedestrians.”
So says a petition created on Change.org three days ago by Jenna Noppen to install a left-turning light at the intersection.
And while “weekly” might be a slight exaggeration, not by much. In 2020, deep into the pandemic when people weren’t driving, there were 26 crashes at Vedder and South Sumas, one every two weeks.
That’s according to ICBC data, and reported by The Progress in 2021, putting the intersection at number 10 for crashes in 2020.
READ MORE: Chilliwack’s top 10 worst intersections for crashes in 2020
The worse intersection in Chilliwack in 2020 was, unsurprisingly, also the busiest at Vedder and Luckakuck Way with 71 crashes. The second worst was Promontory/Watson Road and Vedder at 64.
There were a total of 2,996 crashes in 2020, according to that ICBC data, which was down from 4,765 in 2019.
As for South Sumas and Vedder, the petition had 657 signatures in three days.
“This is a busy intersection that often leads to long lineups of impatient drivers waiting for vehicles to make a left turn against frequently heavy oncoming traffic,” according to one signatory.
Do you have something to add to this story, or something else we should report on? Email:
editor@theprogress.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.