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Yahoo
6 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Turn down the vroom: Councillor's motion targets noisy vehicles in Edmonton
If you live near it, chances are you've heard the Groat Road Grand Prix. In the early hours of the morning, you'll hear screaming engines and snarling motorbikes as they fly through the S turns on Groat Road as if they were the famous Maggotts and Becketts turns at Silverstone. Or, if you're in Cloverdale, you've heard vehicles roaring up the hill on 98 Avenue as if Oscar Piastri was flooring his papaya-orange McLaren up the famous Eau Rouge incline at Spa-Francorchamps. At the end of Tuesday's urban planning committee, Ward papastew Coun. Michael Janz gave notice that he wants council to consider a motion that would allocate $50,000 to address the noisy vehicle issue in Edmonton. And the reasoning is two-fold — because noisy vehicles are often those going well above the speed limit. Janz wants to see the Edmonton Police Service acquire a SoundVue detector. Manufactured by England-based Intelligent Instruments, the technology can pinpoint the amount of noise coming from a vehicle, as well as all of the identifying information. They are being used in New York, Honolulu, Sydney and London, England. This isn't the first time Janz has railed against vehicle noise in council chambers. But he said the technology has come so far, so fast, that the police now have a reliable tool to use. 'What this does is give the police the power to have an educational opportunity, to have a teachable moment, to be able to tell someone, 'Look, you can't do this, you need to change your ways,'' said Janz. 'And then, in the future, there's some other infraction that they get dinged for, it shows on their record that they have warnings.' Janz spoke of 'warnings' and 'teachable moments' because the current provincial government has curbed the use of photo radar and has warned against instituting any new technology on the roads that would lead to tickets. 'I understand that the minister doesn't want the fines, but there's a lot we can do in terms of collecting information, collecting research,' said Janz. Janz said that learning where noise hotspots are would help police employ traffic cops in the right places at the right times. Since the province curtailed the municipalities' power to use photo radar, traffic fatalities have spiked. As of the end of July, Edmonton had recorded 21 fatal accidents in 2025. And the province announced this week it is launching a new anti-speeding campaign. 'We know that noise is directly linked with street racing, dangerous driving and many of these other antisocial behaviours that are dangerous,' said Janz, adding he witnessed motorbikes drag-race each other on Whyte Avenue the previous evening. 'And, as we've seen, this is one of the most deadly years on record in Alberta, and anything we can do as a municipality would be a huge help to improve safety and quality of life on the roadways.' Because the intent of the motion is to use the equipment for research, Janz doesn't feel like the city would be stepping on the province's toes. 'Quality-of-life impact' Janz has a supporter in mayoral candidate and Ward Nakota Isga Coun. Andrew Knack. He said he doesn't just receive a lot of vehicle-noise complaints, but hears the roaring engines firsthand. 'I've been hearing about noisy vehicles along Groat Road and 107 Avenue for years now,' said Knack. 'It's a real quality-of-life impact for people. You've got a young family and your kids are trying to sleep and at one in the morning during the summer, or even fall or spring, and vehicles are flying by. I can hear them from where I live, in the Meadowlark area. I can't even imagine what it feels like for the folks who are right up against it.' Knack said he'd like to see Edmonton police have its own dedicated traffic safety enforcement team, which would focus on school zones and high-collision spots during the day, and on noisy vehicles in the evening. 'We're seeing more unsafe driving behaviour,' said Knack. 'We clearly need to take a more active role. And, frustratingly, we all knew this was coming.' And, as for the reduction of photo radar? 'Well, I hope the minister is seeing that the real impacts of his decision to remove a tool has now made our streets rather less safe. 'When municipalities are asking for these tools to allow them to create safer streets, we should be willing to trust the local representatives who have been democratically elected to make those decisions on behalf of the people they serve.' Edmonton police, Alberta Transportation, and local peace officers team up on Project TENSOR, which targets noisy vehicles, speeders and other traffic violations. The Checkstops began in May and the first instalment led to seven noise-related infractions that were cited, and three more warnings. But Janz said that word gets out fast, and many people know to avoid the checks. And, both Apple and Google Maps will warn drivers where there are traffic-enforcement measures. And, while police do take noise complaints from the public, they need details. If you're shaken out of bed by a revving engine, chances are you don't have a chance to get to your window, note the licence plate, make, model and colour of the vehicle. The machine would do that work, instead. ssandor@ Related Residents demand action over vehicle noise in Edmonton neighbourhoods 'Noise and speeding': Edmonton police launch Project TENSOR traffic crackdown Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don't miss the news you need to know — add and to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here. You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun.
Calgary Herald
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Calgary Herald
'Absolute mess': Public put on hold as city council wades through marathon zoning session
Article content 'It's creating false hope in the community or misleading the public.' Article content Even though they were told they were free to go, the majority in the gallery elected to remain. Attendees included mayoral hopeful Tony Caterina and Reed Clarke, who is running for election in Ward Nakota Isga as part of Cartmell's Better Edmonton party. Another Better Edmonton member, Ward papastew's Joshua Doyle, was also there. Article content What council did get to Article content They sat and heard as council addressed another zoning issue, which also has been a hot-button topic in mature neighbourhoods. The zoning bylaw currently states that the city would 'support' small-scale densification developments in existing residential neighbourhoods, even if the projects were outside of the 'nodes and corridors' specified in the City Plan. This led to blowback from community groups concerned that this created a development free-for-all. Article content Article content An amendment on the table would see the city consider upzoning if the development meets two of these conditions: 'In a node or corridor area or within 100 metres of a node or corridor area; within 400 metres of a mass transit station; along an arterial roadway or a collector roadway; at a corner site or adjacent to a park or open space; adjacent to a site zoned for greater than small-scale development.' The proposed change would create some rules for developers to follow. Article content 'It's a good first step,' said John Soltice, a co-founder of Edmonton Neighbourhoods United, 'But it could go further.' Article content Another speaker, Sabina Qureshi, said that she's encouraged that council is 'finally listening' to residents. Article content 'These are the people who live in the neighbourhoods,' she said. 'These are the ones you should listen to. These are the people who elect you.' Article content Article content Like Soltice, Jennifer Faulkner of the Parkallen Community League said the proposal is a first move to prevent 'overbuild neighbourhood capacity.' She's concerned that the zoning bylaw opens the entire Parkallen neighbourhood to redevelopment, when the south side of the community has only one access to an arterial road and can't handle the added capacity. Article content But, there are other considerations at play. While there is no doubt a grassroots movement happening throughout the city's mature neighbourhoods to battle the zoning bylaw, there are investors who have already sunk money into in-progress developments and they worry that changing the rules after just one year pulls the rug out from under their feet. There are also concerns that blocking densification efforts would, eventually, push house prices higher and wreck the affordability advantage that Edmonton has over other major Canadian cities. Article content 'Shifting back to minimizing density after just a year stands to undercut these efforts,' said Kelvin Hamilton, a local architect. Article content Rick Dulat is a developer with more than 20 projects on the go, and seven are in the permitting process. He warned council that changing the rules could result in legal actions against the city. Article content 'This is not how a reliable permitting process works.' he said. Article content 'It's hard not to see the political motivations at play,' said Dulat, a swipe at Cartmell's planned motion to pause infill. Article content Dulat said he's been developing in mature neighbourhoods for a decade. And, he's met resistance. He said signage of a corner-lot development in Crestwood was vandalized with the words 'slum lord.' Article content 'I am really tired. I am exhausted. I face racism. I face vandalism.' Article content A balancing act Article content Coun, Andrew Knack, expected to be Cartmell's main rival for the mayor's chair, said council will strike a balance between the two opposing forces. Article content Article content 'We've been making changes to the zoning bylaw for the last decade and, each time we make changes, there are always going to be some applications that are impacted,' he said. 'We absolutely want to respect (the development industry's) time and attention. We also need to make sure we're listening to the residents that we serve, as well. Article content 'We'll probably debate what the the right time is for this to take effect, and if there are any legal requirements that we have as a city for applications under review.' Article content
