Bicycle lane to replace on street parking on Sandford Street

As the Town of Newmarket struggles to slow cars down on residential streets, a number of ideas are being considered for the Savage Road area focusing on reducing speeds near the elementary school and Paul Semple Park.

A report received by Newmarket Council suggests that reducing the width of the street may slow drivers down. Temporary width barriers may be installed on Savage Road South, near Jelley Ave, and Savage Road North, near Nelson Crt. These width barriers could be removed during the winter months so as to not impede with snow plow routes.

Council is also considering prohibiting on the street parking on Sandford Street and on Savage Road in the area of Armitage Village Public School. In this area, Council would like to create a bike lane that would serve to reduce the width of the Sandford St and hopefully slow traffic.

Despite receiving emails and presentations at Newmarket Council meetings from local residents to do something about the high volume of traffic turning left from the Savage Road entrance into the Nature's Emporium Plaza, there are no plans by the Town of Newmarket to make this area safer.

Some local residents have called for the Savage Road entrance to the plaza to be closed altogether, leaving Savage Road exclusively used as a residential street. Closing the Savage Road entranceway would require vehicles turning into the plaza to use one of the three Yonge Street entrances instead. Local residents worry that the Savage Road entrance issues are only going to get worse once the new Shoppers Drug Mart store is opened beside the existing Bank of Nova Scotia building.