I urge you to study this road widening issue in King Township and to sign the petition. Please read on …
Roads, roads roads! We seem to need more and more of them. And the more we build, the more traffic they generate, and the more we build.
The Province and York Region are all analyzing the GTA for future transportation needs. Several studies are underway to identify corridors for vehicular traffic, including the Province’s GTA West Corridor Study (basically creating another 407-series type highway between Burlington and Vaughan) and the Region’s plans to identify one or more additional interchanges on Highway 400 and the resultant road widenings to accommodate this east-west traffic flow.
Nothing is set in concrete – yet (or is that asphalt?). Note that none of this analysis includes alternate transportation models, such as rail (to move freight and take the burden off the roads, not to mention the environment – yet I digress here).
So guess what? Seemingly independently to all of this, York Region looks to be getting its ducks in line to widen King Road to 4 lanes from 2 between Highway 400 and Nobleton. The left hand doesn’t seem to be talking to the right hand here!
I can make NO sense, no sense at all, why this road would be considered for widening (and at considerable expense AND environmental impact in doing so). The only values I can see are for safety, as King Road needs some turn lanes and safety enhancements to make even existing traffic levels safer. These can be accommodated from what I can see without having to go to this expense.
Widening King Road would, as my caring citizen friends know full well, will make worse of an already bad situation in Nobleton. It’s bad enough that the town is bisected by two Regional Roads. Village life and a sense of community are strained at best (King City is in the same boat, though Schomberg is fortunate to have its historic village core off the main thoroughfares).
Quite simply, to place a widened road through the same village will exacerbate an already flawed growth model, irrespective of other larger diversionary plans around King and Vaughan. Traffic will only increase through the village, and not by local residents.
I assure you the majority of this incremental traffic will be from commuters trying to get from Bolton to Highway 400 (just as Highway 27 is increasingly becoming a thoroughfare for Barrie and Innisfil commuters to and from the city).
Click here for the link to an online petition these caring citizens have organized.
Alternatively, you can download, print and complete this PDF attachment and mail or drop off it to any of the 4 locations specified.
Look, see, listen, understand … and please … Get Engaged. Here is a good way to start.
Thanks for summarizing the situation regarding Nobleton so well. We really need all the help we can get on this one before the small town character of Nobleton is wiped out. Already highway 27 has 4 lanes throughout much of the town and if the King Rd. is allowed to have 4 lanes as well, the historic look of many properties will be destroyed. Of course, right now, they are only looking at the King Rd from Hwy 400 to Hwy 27. Then they will separately look at the King Rd. from Highway 27 to the Caledon border. To widen that stretch, many properties will be nearly on the road, including historic Nobleton United Church (built in 1896). Already some property was taken from the front of this church when they did the sewers. However, if they widen the King Rd. here, the entrance to the church will be right beside the King Rd.
There are many properties on the King Rd already who have a tough time turning into their properties. With two additional lanes, the situation will be even worse. This is a disaster waiting to happen.