City presenting plans tonight to redesign crash-prone Duke Street intersection

The intersection of Duke Street and West Taylor Run Parkway has been a hot spot for car crashes and at a meeting tonight, city staff are scheduled to present plans to give the intersection a makeover.

The meeting, held at nearby Bishop Ireton High School (201 Cambridge Road) from 7-8:30 p.m. tonight (Tuesday) will include an overview of the current intersection and a look at potential design changes.

“During the meeting, City staff will cover both the West Taylor Run intersection on Duke Street and the proposed access onto Telegraph Road east of West Taylor Run,” a release said. “There will be an open house section, a presentation and an opportunity for participants to ask questions and/or provide feedback about the project.”

The city’s website said the intersection has seen frequent crashes in recent years.

“The Duke and West Taylor Run Parkway intersection has been the topic of discussion for a number of years and was identified as a high crash location through the City’s Vision Zero Program,” the site said. “The Duke Street and West Taylor Run Parkway Project aims to improve safety while reducing neighborhood cut-through traffic. The project will redesign the intersection in conjunction with the addition of a new ramp to access Telegraph Road.”

The intersection was also included in earlier changes to keep more cut-through traffic on Duke Street and out of nearby residential neighborhoods.

The city’s website said plans include eliminating direct access to the Telegraph Road ramp from West Taylor Run Parkway, which would help disincentivize commuters using the residential street to get around Duke Street congestion.

“By eliminating direct access onto the Telegraph Road ramp from West Taylor Run Parkway, congestion on Duke Street can be improved and less people will likely use neighborhood streets to access this ramp,” the city’s website said. “As well, the signal timing adjustments will also encourage drivers to use Quaker Lane and Duke Street. While there will ultimately be an additional ramp onto Telegraph Road, the goal is to make it faster for cut-through traffic to stay on Quaker Lane and Duke Street.”

The intersection was also included in earlier changes to keep more cut-through traffic on Duke Street and out of nearby residential neighborhoods.

Final concepts for the new intersection are expected to be finished in spring 2023, with construction starting in 2025 or 2026 with a year of construction.

Via Google Maps