Cr Rahme said he had been approached by several residents concerned about their safety and the dangers facing motorists and pedestrians when drivers failed to stop at the Fifth Street and The Trongate intersection.
“It’s an enormous problem,” he said.
The council’s traffic committee has over the years refused similar requests after Transport NSW crash data showed only one accident in five years, but Blaxcell Street resident Samira Bounassif said that data only showed accidents that had been reported to police “but residents have witnessed many more”.
The council will again consider the issue, taking on board the “residents’ feedback regarding significant accident and safety issues”.
Just over a year ago, Mrs Bounassif witnessed a horrifying accident at the intersection with one of the cars landing on the footpath – “It was just lucky no-one was walking there,” she said.
She said too many vehicles travelling along to The Trongate, did not stop at the intersection, leading to near misses and crashes.
“The only way to investigate the issue at this intersection is to survey the directly impacted residents, who had witnessed several incidents over recent years,” she said.
Cr Rahme also said the “absurd reconfiguration” of the stop signs over recent years – moving stop signs from Fifth Street to The Trongate – had only worsened the problem.
He also read a letter on behalf of a 70-year-old resident who lives near the intersection and wrote: “Not a day goes by, particularly when the grandchildren are over, that I don’t stress about their safety and pedestrian safety. I’ve witnessed numerous near misses and these have grown exponentially since the reconfiguration of the signs.
“Something needs to be done before lives are lost.”
