Daytime traffic converges on the intersection at Highway 7 and Highway 21 in Kindersley. An online survey focusing on the Highway 7 corridor through Kindersley is now open at the Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure website and people are being encouraged to fill it out before April 10.

Kenneth Brown
of The Clarion

Kindersley residents are being given an opportunity to complete an online survey that will help to determine future improvements on Highway 7 in Kindersley.

The Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure has released a survey as part of a public consultation. The survey focuses on the section of Highway 7 that runs through Kindersley. People who use the highway and service roads are being asked to take the ministry’s online survey.

The survey is for residents, commuters and any other motorists that travel through town on the highway. People will find the survey here. The Town of Kindersley has also provided a link to the survey.

The survey’s title is Highway 7 Safety Improvements – Kindersley and it’s part of the ministry’s Highway 7 Kindersley Corridor Study. According to the ministry, Kindersley has been experiencing an increase in traffic.

The increase in traffic is expected to continue into the future, so the ministry is looking to identify and prioritize future safety and traffic improvements along the busy stretch of highway. The ministry states that Highway 7 is also part of the National Highway System.

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The Saskatchewan government wants to know people’s thoughts as they pertain to the highway, intersections and service roads. The survey is being conducted by Associated Engineering on behalf of the ministry. The survey will remain open until April 10.

Steve Shaheen, a senior communications consultant for the ministry, said the survey is covers a wide range of items. The goal is to lay out the concerns to help the ministry determine which concerns are of the highest priority to respondents. The survey responses will help the ministry.

“There’s a whole bunch of different things in there,” Shaheen said, recognizing the survey is one step in helping to prepare for future highway and infrastructure improvements. “It’s a bit broad, but it will help steer them going forward.”

He noted that the online engagement has worked well for citizens because it gives people an opportunity to respond at their leisure. The online engagement is taking place instead of an open house, but the public engagement could include both options. Survey results could be shared at a future open house, Shaheen commented.

It was recognized that traffic lights have been knocked down by semi trucks and trailers turning onto the highway from the service roads. There are few controlled intersections in the provincial highway system, Shaheen said.

The responses could help to determine whether or not certain intersections need to be controlled, he noted. Stakeholder groups might have specific concerns to share, but the survey is open to everyone including a resident of Saskatoon using the highway to go on a skiing vacation to the mountains.

There are also controlled intersections on provincial highway corridors in places such as Lloydminster, North Battleford, Prince Albert and Yorkton, but traffic lights on highways are rare because the idea is to keep a steady flow of traffic on a highway, Shaheen said.

Ministry officials just want to hear back from citizens to get a better grasp on their concerns with the stretch of Highway 7 through town. The spokesperson added that results will be shared with citizens after the survey has closed.

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