Sep 03, 2008 - 04:30 AM

By Jillian Follert

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DURHAM -- When it comes to the worst intersections in Durham Region, there are two different sets of criteria that decide the winners.

On one hand, the Region of Durham and the various municipalities keep data on intersections that see the most collisions in a given year, and those that are most in need of safety improvements.

On the other hand, residents driving the roads every day have their own ideas about which intersections are the most frustrating, dangerous or accident prone.

This summer, This Week asked readers in Oshawa, Whitby and Clarington to weigh in on which intersection they consider to be the worst offender.

The responses poured in, with dozens of readers offering up dozens of different locales -- no two readers named the same spot.

The majority of complaints relate to drivers running red lights and stop signs.

Read on to see which intersections riled drivers and which ones made the Top 10 lists compiled by the Region and the various municipalities.

OSHAWA RESIDENTS SAY:

Robert Miles said Adelaide and Ritson is the worst. When travelling east, he reports drivers often go into the turn lane at Ritson, only to zoom straight ahead and cut off other drivers.

Dave Smith cites Olive Avenue and Townline Road as the most dangerous, because Olive appears to end when it actually becomes Kingswood Drive and continues into that subdivision. He reports drivers going east often cruise through the stop sign to make a left turn, because they assume traffic will be turning right bound onto Olive -- which isn't always the case.

Oshawa's Tina Atkinson said Rossland Road and Gibbons street is the most frightening, because people run red lights in both directions.

"Just this morning I was going though on a green light," she said in a June letter to This Week. "There was a child at the time going to cross the street. Thank God he did not go right away, because a truck travelling about 35 miles per hour flew through the red light his way."

David Hamen said he is glad he's not a pedestrian when he witnesses the mad dash to cross the road at the intersection of Oshawa Boulevard and Bond Street, where speeding cars can suddenly appear from around the bend.

Oshawa's Danielle Wilson said the four-way stop at the intersection of Sommerville Street and Orchardview Boulevard is frightening because drivers often speed straight through -- even when there is a school crossing guard at the location.

"This is absolutely unacceptable," Mr. Wilson said. " Someone's child will be seriously hurt at that intersection one day if this is not controlled," Ms. Wilson said.

Fiona Shier's a commuter from Oshawa, said the intersection of Harmony Road and Bloor Street can get dicey during the morning rush hour, when southbound cars on Harmony are lined up to turn left onto the highway. She reports that many drivers don't wait for their turn in the left-hand lane, instead flying up the right side and cutting in to the left, causing other drivers to slam on their brakes.

WHITBY RESIDENTS SAY:

Heather Warkentin said the worst offender is the three-way stop at McQuay Boulevard and Kennett Drive.

During the morning rush hour, she said drivers heading to Hwy. 2 often don't come to a complete stop at the intersection.

"I have lived in other neighbourhoods in Durham and Ontario, and have never seen such a disregard for traffic laws," she said. "Rolling stops, no attempts at stops at all, two cars going through at once. What is the rush? If you are in such a hurry, leave 15 minutes earlier."

Whitby's Bruce Johnson said the intersection of Cochrane Street and Rossland Road gets his vote, because drivers often run red lights. "Quite often the light changes to yellow and people accelerate through the yellow, but most times the light has turned totally red," he said. "This happens regularly and is a disaster waiting to happen."

Up in Brooklin, Mary Lou and David Harrison said the junction of Winchester Road, St. Thomas Street and Queen Street is a nightmare, because it doesn't intersect squarely.

Young driver Cassie Herron said she often sees people run the red light at Anderson Street and Rossland Road late at night, because it's a long red and there isn't much traffic at that hour.

"But it's still a dangerous thing to do," she said.

Resident Linda Davidson said the intersection of Dundas and Anderson streets is another example of one where drivers in a hurry speed through yellow lights or outright run reds, saying she has almost been hit several times.

CLARINGTON RESIDENTS SAY:

Gail Luke, a senior who uses a scooter to get around, said she has nearly been hit several times at the intersection of Liberty Street and King Street.

There is an advance green at that location and Ms. Luke said an extra car or two often tries to sneak through after the arrow has disappeared, putting pedestrians at risk.

"People are too busy getting to their destination these days and do not care," she said. "I do not ride the scooter on the road anymore because it is too dangerous. There is no consideration for anyone anymore."

Bowmanville's Roy Smith said the winner, without a doubt, is the three-way stop at Baseline Road west of Liberty Street, and the ramp to Hwy. 401.

Drivers travelling east on Baseline, south into the intersection or coming into the intersection from the highway must stop, while those travelling west on Baseline and turning left onto the 401 ramp, have no stop sign, he said.

"It can be confusing and dangerous to those who are unaware of the arrangement and are less than perceptive," he said.

MUNICIPAL EXPERTS SAY:

(Statistics courtesy of the Region of Durham Works Department, Traffic Engineering and Operations)

Regional intersections in Oshawa, Whitby and Clarington with the highest potential for safety improvement

(1) Hwy. 2 at Regional Road 57, Clarington

(2) Ritson Road at King Street, Oshawa

(3) Bloor Street at Park Road North, Oshawa

(4) Harmony Road at Taunton Road, Oshawa

(5) Ritson Road at Bond Street, Oshawa

(6) Simcoe Street at Bloor Street, Oshawa

(7) Rossland Road at Mary Street, Oshawa

(8) Simcoe Street at Olive Avenue, Oshawa

(9) Brock Street at Consumers Drive, Whitby

(10) Adelaide Avenue at Mary Street, Oshawa

Regional intersections in Oshawa, Whitby and Clarington with highest number of reported collisions in 2007

(1) Ritson Road at Taunton Road, Oshawa 28 collisions

(2) Thickson Road at Dundas Street, Whitby 25 collisions

(3) Bloor Street at Park Road South, Oshawa 24 collisions

(4) Brock Road at Taunton Road, Whitby 23 collisions

(5) Thickson Road at Consumers/Champlain Drive, Whitby 23 collisions

(6) Harmony Road at Taunton Road, Oshawa 22 collisions

(7) Simcoe Street at Bloor Street, Oshawa 20 collisions

(8) Simcoe Street at Rossland Road, Oshawa 20 collisions

(9) Simcoe Street at Adelaide Avenue, Oshawa 19 collisions

(10) Brock Street at Rossland Road, Whitby 19 collisions

Oshawa intersections with the highest number of collisions in 2007

(1) Bond Street West at Gibbons Street 10

(2) Beatrice Street East at Mary Street North 9

(3) King Street East at Keewatin Street 9

(4) King Street West at Gibbons Street 8

(5) Bond Street East at Division Street 5

(6) Bond Street East at Mary Street North 5

(7) King Street East at Central Park Boulevard 4

(8) King Street East at Eastlawn Street 4

(9) King Street East at Mary Street 4

(10) First Avenue at Drew Street 3

Whitby intersections with the highest number of collisions in 2007

(1) Garden Street at Dundas Street 10

(2) Brock Street at Mary Street 9

(3) Brock Street at Dundas Street 9

(4) Dundas Street at Glen Hill Drive 9

(5) Dundas Street at Garrard Road 8

(6) Dundas Street at Jeffery Street 7

(7) Dryden Boulevard at Garden Street 5

(8) Dundas Street at Kathleen Street 5

(9) Dundas Street ay Lupin Drive 5

(10) Brock Street at Dunlop Street 4

Clarington intersections with the highest number of collisions in 2007

(1) King Street at Scugog Street 9

(2) King Street at Temperance Street 5

(3) King Street at Mearns Avenue 4

(4) King Street at Simpson Avenue 4

(5) King Street at Roenigk Drive 4

(6) Sandringham Drive at Trulls Road 4

(7) Division Street at King Street 3

(8) Division Street at Wellington Street 3

(9) George Street at Wellington Street 3

(10) King Street at Lambert Street 3

THE POLICE SAY:

Durham Regional Police Sergeant Paul McCurbin said it's useful to compile collisions statistics, but warns this data often does not paint a complete picture.

The intersections with the most collisions are typically those with the highest traffic volume -- more cars equals more opportunity for those cars to run into each other, he said.

"Brock and Hwy. 2 in Pickering is a good example," Sgt. McCurbin said. "You have a lot of collisions there because there are a lot of cars. You might have an intersection that is less travelled and has less collisions, but is actually more dangerous."â?¨ The police spokesman also noted the number of collisions doesn't shed any light on their severity. Busy intersections might have a lot of fender-benders, while an intersection with less volume might have several fatal crashes, he said.

Which intersection do you feel is the worst?
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