Q: Are the temporary signs posted in a construction area legal or are they advisory?
A: In Toronto, we all seem to know two seasons: hockey season and construction season. And in this town, the hockey season seems to be the shorter of the two. While construction and road maintenance is really a year-round job, those lane restricting and often pesky road construction sites seem to multiply once the warmer weather is upon us. Maintaining our vehicles is a must to keep them running safely so it makes sense to expect roadways and highways require the same care to repair winter potholes, broken pavement and normal wear and tear.To ensure the safe and orderly movement of traffic through construction zones and to afford workers present in those zones a higher degree of safety, the Ministry of Transportation made amendments to the Highway Traffic Act (HTA) to include specific laws for motorists driving in designated construction zones with the most notable amendment being to the speeding law.Section 128 of the HTA sets out the rate of speed for motor vehicles in specific areas, for example: within cities, other built up areas, rural areas and controlled access highways such as the Hwys. 401 and the 400. For years though, there was no law to control the rate of speed in and around areas where road repair or construction was necessary with traffic still moving all around and typically it was up to the individual motorist's judgement to drive cautiously when faced with the various temporary caution signs. With the addition of Section 14.1 to the act, municipalities can legally lower the allowable speed within designated construction zones to a safer and enforceable limit. To ensure drivers got the message, police officers issuing tickets for speeding through a designated zone with lower posted speed limit signs were now allowed to double the normal set fine whenever workers were present on the site. For example, speeding at 20 kilometres over the newly posted construction zone limit would normally yield a fine of $90 plus a few additional fees for administration and victim surcharge bringing the total to around $120 plus three demerit points. That same speeding ticket received within a construction zone with workers present would quickly become about $240.Many of the road signs posted in construction zones are advisory and are identified by their bright orange background and motorists are well advised to follow the warnings. Other regular signs such as yield, stop and lane signs remain legally enforceable including any portable or temporary traffic lights. And let's not forget the traffic control people, more commonly known as 'flag persons'. While they are not police officers directing traffic, they are authorized in the HTA and are often responsible for funnelling single or double lanes of traffic safely through a work zone by displaying a hand-held stop sign or cautionary 'slow' sign. Section 146.1 of the Highway Traffic Act makes it an offence for drivers to disobey the lawful signals given by the traffic control person and offending motorists will be ticketed by the police who often keep a watchful eye to ensure drivers comply with the directions given. And as a last note, being patient and allowing extra time for construction delays before setting out on your journey is the best way to avoid an unfortunate road incident. Road construction is short-term pain for long-term gain and building safer roads benefits us all in the end. So let's give all highway improvement workers a 'brake' and drive cautiously and responsibly through their work areas. After all, they too want to go home at the end of their work day.