A school, a park, a 200+ signature petition, a community meeting, and now a ballot.
Why do we make it so hard to get basic road safety measures?
We need your help! Keep reading for more information…
I have a very deep connection to Walnut Grove. My wife and I moved here in 2013, into one of the townhouses in the Highland Ridge complex along Walnut Grove Drive, opposite Walnut Grove Secondary School.
I no longer live on this particular street, but for the 6 years I did, I observed a number of concerning aspects about Walnut Grove Drive. As it is a wide 4 lane road, with 1 lane taken up by parking at the front of the townhomes, it invites high vehicle speeds, even though it is situated along Walnut Grove Secondary School and Walnut Grove Community Park.
From 88 Avenue northbound, there is a ~6% grade hill which descends towards the crosswalk. It’s not uncommon to see vehicles going at least 80kph down the hill towards people waiting to cross the road, which hardly feels safe.
That’s part of the reason why, when we learned of Alecia Jordan’s petition to bring traffic calming to Walnut Grove Drive, Strong Towns Langley was in full support.
As of writing, the petition has 232 signatures. Alecia was able to rally support from many neighbours and friends in her community. This included our group, which wrote a letter of endorsement of the initiative:
This led to a meeting this week between Councillor Michael Pratt, MLA/Councillor Misty van Popta, Alecia and other local residents. At this meeting, residents were promised a motion at the next council meeting to move forward with implementing traffic calming.
Generally the current council has been very forward thinking with traffic calming measures, with Telegraph Trail now featuring curb bump outs, and 216th Street soon to be road-dieted. In our postings we have applauded these measures, and continue to do so.
Today, the agenda for next Monday’s council meeting was released, so let’s take a closer look at the motion put forward.
7. Traffic Calming on Walnut Grove Drive
Whereas:
There has been a significant level of interest demonstrated within the neighbourhood surrounding Walnut Grove Secondary School and Walnut Grove Community Park for the implementation of traffic calming measures along Walnut Grove Drive; and
Walnut Grove Drive is classified as a Major Collector Road and serves as a critical emergency response route, and therefore any traffic calming must be done in a way that does not inhibit the ability of First Responders to attend to an emergency but that also provides safer streets for all users.
Therefore be it resolved that:
Council directs staff to consult with the Fire Department, RCMP, and BC Ambulance Service in order to determine the preferred method of vertical traffic calming that could be implemented on Walnut Grove Drive;
Staff initiate the ballot process in the neighbourhood to determine the level of support for traffic calming measures, which may potentially include but are not limited to:
Speed cushions
Curb bulb-outs at pedestrian crossings
Raised pedestrian crossings where feasible; and
Potential additional pedestrian crossings at select locations along Walnut Grove Drive
Be it further resolved that Council request that staff report to Council on the possibility of constructing a protected bi-directional bicycle path along Walnut Grove Drive without reducing the overall number of available street parking stalls.
Looking at this motion, there's a significant issue that needs to be addressed.
The motion directs staff to "initiate the ballot process in the neighbourhood to determine the level of support for traffic calming measures" - but this is actually unnecessary under the Township's own updated traffic calming policy.
According to Section 4.2.3 of the revised Neighbourhood Traffic Calming Policy that Council approved in December 2024:
"For priority locations, the Township will develop a traffic calming plan and conduct a community ballot to determine the level of support for the proposed plan. Roads fronting schools or playground zones are not subject to the requirement of a community ballot."
Walnut Grove Drive directly fronts both Walnut Grove Secondary School AND Walnut Grove Community Park. This means it is explicitly exempt from requiring any community ballot or consultation process.
Furthermore, looking at the traffic calming device table in Section 4.1.5, "Major collector by School or Park" roads can already implement several of the measures mentioned in the motion:
✅ Raised Crosswalks (raised pedestrian crossings)
✅ Curb Extensions (curb bulb-outs)
✅ Sidewalk Extensions
✅ Traffic Circles
The policy framework is already in place. The Township can simply:
Assess eligibility (which should be straightforward given the location)
Develop a traffic calming plan
Move forward with implementation
No ballot required. No lengthy consultation process needed.
We need your help! Please email Township of Langley Mayor and Council requesting that this “ballot process” be waived for traffic calming on Walnut Grove Drive, as permitted in the Traffic Calming Policy.
While consultation with emergency services makes sense from a practical standpoint, the motion treats this as if it requires some special process when the policy already provides a clear pathway forward.
And this wasn’t a mistake, I have personally confirmed with those involved that this motion voluntarily opts into the ballot process, above and beyond the policy requirements.
Council spent considerable time last December streamlining the traffic calming process specifically to remove bureaucratic barriers - yet this motion reintroduces the very delays and complications they sought to eliminate.
Walnut Grove Drive residents shouldn't have to wait for an unnecessary ballot process when the Township's own policy recognizes that roads fronting schools and parks deserve expedited traffic calming measures. The 232 petition signatures already demonstrate community support, along with the obvious need for traffic calming near schools and parks.
Politically, this should already be a slam dunk.
If the ballot fails to pass and a child walking to school is nearly hit by a speeding car in the crosswalk, will our response be, “sorry kid, the ballot didn’t get enough votes” ?
We know that ballots, referendums and public hearings can often bring out unreasonable opponents, people who oppose any kind of change, even if it is for the greater good. That’s why we depend on political leadership to address these kinds of challenges.
And finally, this isn't isolated to Walnut Grove Drive. Roads all around the Township of Langley often end up prioritizing car convenience over walkability and safety, even when they front a park or a school. To be fair, there have been a number of promises made by mayor and council to address some of these - the mayor recently posted about 11 traffic calming locations for 2025 which is encouraging, and it's great to see schools like Josette Dandurand Elementary, St Catherine's, and RE Mountain getting attention.
But from time to time, there are going to be edge cases, situations where a more major, busier, or wider road needs to be made safer. It’s easy to traffic calm a quiet local street, but we also need to be unafraid of addressing these more challenging situations, and willing to put people and community safety, rather than car convenience, first. We already have the policy and the tools to do it.
It's time for Council to follow their own policy and move forward with implementing the traffic calming measures that Walnut Grove Drive clearly needs.
Strong Towns Langley is a community group dedicated to making Langley, British Columbia a better place. We advocate for incremental development, sustainable transportation solutions, housing accessibility, public spaces, and responsible growth strategies. Our group is part of the larger Strong Towns movement, focusing on creating financially resilient and people-oriented communities.
To learn more visit https://strongtownslangley.org