Goffs residents want speed limit reduced on Old Guysborough Road, but province won't do it

A couple in Goffs, N.S., is looking to have the speed limit reduced on a section of the Old Guysborough Road, but the province won't do it.

Michael Crowley and Sheila Rockwell have lived in the area since September 2021 and say that drivers speeding between the Airlane Golf Club and the Goffs-Devon boundary signs has led to collisions and vehicles driving into the ditch.

"The trucks go by so fast that they can't stay on their side of the road because when the speed limit is 80, they do 90 or 100 — which is why we're trying to get this speed limit lowered," said Rockwell.

Rockwell said another hazard is that drivers in the passing nearly get hit by oncoming traffic around a tight bend in the road.

"The passing lane should not be there," Rockwell said.

Crowley said he would like to see the limit reduced to 60 km/h for the three-kilometre stretch near the residential section of the road.

The couple said they, along with other people in the area, have had no luck getting the province to reduce the speed limit.

"The reasoning is the Canadian standard for road safety says it's OK ... they have gauged and they have studied and they say, 'OK, you guys don't have a problem,'" Cowley said.

Province conducted review

In an email, Nova Scotia's Department of Public Works told CBC News that when formal requests are made to reduce speed limits, traffic staff conduct speed-limit reviews. 

"This includes studying the road environment and road condition; collecting speed and traffic volume samples; reviewing collision history; measuring development density; and reviewing regulatory and warning signs," the email reads.

"A speed zone review was conducted of Old Guyborough Road and it was determined that a speed reduction was not warranted."

Nova Scotia RCMP said there were three collisions along that stretch of road in 2021, six in 2022 and three so far in 2023. They said only one of those collisions caused any injuries, in August 2022.

Crowley said residents have written emails, spoken with local politicians and circulated a petition, but the petition was rejected because the format was wrong.

"It's not acceptable. It's insulting, it's demeaning and it's arrogant and somebody's going to get killed," he said.

If the speed limit was reduced, Rockwell said it would make the neighbourhood more pleasant.

"We could enjoy our community a little more. It would mean that we could go for a walk on the side of the road. It would mean that we weren't afraid to pull out of our driveway," he said. 

"When we pull out of our driveway [now], we go down to the end, we turn off our heater, we turn off our radio, we open our windows to see if we can hear anything coming before we dare turn out onto the road."