Kamloops residents will be able to have their say into changes to traffic flow at the intersection of 1st Avenue and Lansdowne Street this month.

The changes include the replacement of the dedicated southbound left turn lane from 1st Avenue onto Victoria Street into one that goes from northbound from 1st Avenue onto Lansdowne Street.

Transportation Manager Purvez Irani says the proposed changes come as traffic data shows there are on average 235 vehicles that turn left from 1st Avenue onto Lansdowne Street during peak afternoon hours, compared to just 21 vehicles that wait to turn left onto Victoria Street.

“By converting the existing southbound left-turn lane onto Victoria Street into a northbound left-turn lane onto Lansdowne Street, the added capacity will reduce delays at the intersection of 1st Avenue and Lansdowne Street,” Irani said.

“In addition, vehicle queueing is often observed beyond the intersection and into Lorne Street, Lansdowne Street, 1st Avenue, and Victoria Street, backing up through the crosswalk and other intersections upstream.”

Irani says the proposed improvements would reduce delays on Lansdowne Street by 30 per cent, making traffic flow on 1st Avenue more efficiently as the light would be green for a longer period of time.

“[As it stands], what we have to do is provide adequate green time to First Avenue and we have to remove green time from Lansdowne,” Irani told Radio NL in December. “By making the switch, we’ll be able to green time to the Lansdowne westbound movement.”

Residents will be able to complete a survey until Jan. 26, following which City Council will decide whether to proceed with the proposed changes or keep the intersection as is.

“If approved by Council, the intersection changes will be planned in coordination with the City Centre Sanitary Project scheduled to begin this spring,” Irani added.

He also hinted at a series of future improvements along the Lansdowne corridor including additional intersection signal timing improvements along Lansdowne Street, upgrades to the Lansdowne Street-2nd Avenue rail interconnection, better vehicle detection, and potential adaptive signal technology that “learns” to optimize signals and react to varying traffic patterns.

“Funding for this project would be made possible through the existing Intersection Capacity Improvement capital program,” Irani said.

For more information on the proposed changes at 1st Avenue and Lansdowne Streets, and to take the survey, go here.