ARKELL ‒ With plans to address speeding on a road between Guelph and Arkell underway, improving parking is next on Puslinch's agenda for the area.
While plans to add Arkell Road to the list of Black Cat monitoring locations and lower the speed limit on Watson Rd S. from 80 km/h to 70 km/h were well received during a Wednesday council meeting, many councillors shared community group, the Concerned Citizens of Puslinch's concerns that parking still needs to be addressed.
This follows the group's delegation in January asking that speeding issues on Arkell Road and Wellington Road 41, also known as Watson Road South, be addressed and that shoulder parking solutions be considered as more and more trail walkers are parking along the two trail entrances, especially at Arkell Springs Trail.
“The shoulders were not designed for parking. The safety of these people should be a major reason for reducing the speed limit,” said the letter. “Eventually, a parking area may be necessary, similar to Starkey Hill’s.”
One of the trail entrances is also located between two hills, which further limits sight lines.
During discussions about lowering the speed limits, the GRCA confirmed that while the hiking trail on that property is open to the public, it’s located in the floodplain, and there are no plans related to formal parking at this time.
Guelph also confirmed with staff that while it has a user agreement with the Guelph Hiking Club and Guelph Off Road Biking Association for the use of the trails by their members, they advised that parking is not a part of the agreement's provisions.
But Coun. Russel Hurst asked staff to consider lengthening the pavement on the side of the road to accommodate parking if developing standalone parking isn’t going to happen.
“I just drove by there twice today and there were a number of cars parked out there for various reasons,” said Hurst. “What happens now is people impede traffic with one tire on the pavement and one on the gravel and it's a hazard.”
Coun. Jessica Goyda said that as Guelph considers a proposed development in the area, now would be the best time to ask that the parking problems be addressed.
In June, Rockpoint Properties proposed a series of official plan and zoning bylaw amendments that would allow it to build 30 detached homes and 68 cluster townhouses on a 17-acre lot at 220 Arkell Rd, sparking concerns about traffic volumes in the area.
“In terms of the trails themselves, it’s good to see them so well used but I agree that the parking can be hazardous,” said Goyda. “GRCA has said there are no plans for future parking but we could put it on their radar so that if and when they plan on making upgrades (in the area) that they consider adding parking as well.”
All comments surrounding parking and traffic were included in the township's new Roads Management Plan for further consideration.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
