The junction between Highway 47 and the Estevan truck bypass has garnered unfortunate attention again, by being the site of two collisions in the span of a week.
The first of those accidents happened on April 26, resulting in a fatality, while the other on May 2, ended with one of the motorists involved being charged with impaired driving. Both matters remain under investigation.
The April 26 accident involved a semi-truck colliding with a car travelling southbound towards Estevan, at the intersection. The male driver of the semi-truck was taken to hospital with minor injuries and released the following day, while the female driver and sole occupant of the car was pronounced dead the scene.
“So far, it appears that the vehicle proceeded from the intersection, when it was unsafe to do so,” said Cst. Chad Mehl, with the Estevan RCMP. “We’re still investigating the other contributing factors that might answer why that was the case.”
Mehl said that road conditions, weather and alcohol weren’t factors.
In the case of the May 2 collision, a Dodge Caliber was travelling on the bypass, and was broadsided by a northbound GMC Sierra pickup truck. The driver of the truck was determined to have been intoxicated at the time. Barry Leggett, from the Regina area, has since been charged with impaired driving and driving with a blood alcohol level over 80 mg/L.
Mehl said a collision analyst is still working to determine the speeds of the vehicles involved, and to see if any other factors may have played a role in the collision.
“It won’t be available for a few months, pending other investigations. (The collision analyst) has to balance other priorities with it,” said Mehl. “There might be investigational information to consider, as well, as to why things happened the way they happened.”
Paul Spasoff, assistant director of communications for the Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure, said that a safety audit is taking place on the truck bypass, in light of the recent collisions and as part of the regular safety protocol the ministry has in place for new roadways in the province.
“That’s something we do when we open a new section of highway, and we do it after the highway has been in operation for a period of time, to see how it’s being used, and if there are any concerns,” said Spasoff. “It will help us identify any enhancements we may need to make to it, as far as the traffic flow is concerned.”
Although it’s difficult to say at this time what recommendations are in store for the intersection of Hwy. 47 and the bypass, Spasoff noted that there could be any number of recommendations for the intersection, such as reducing speeds, extra signage, extra lights or different turn lanes.
Spasoff emphasized that safety is a top priority, and that there are certain things that can be improved about any sort of problematic area, from an engineering perspective.
He added, “There are other things we can work with people on, such as public education, public awareness and driver education, because this is a new roadway. We can look to see if there are things we can help people enhance their education regarding it.”
