We are petitioning for a speed bump on The Credit Woodlands, near the Queenston intersection, for increased safety, traffic control, and noise reduction in our neighbourhood. This is important because our road has been getting busier and busier and louder and louder, especially this year. It has become a main throughway and this is causing safety concerns and is impacting us negatively.

Despite the speed limit of 40 km/h, cars are avoiding the larger roads and are using our road instead. Meanwhile, they do not respect the speed limits and there is a constant stream of traffic going much faster than regulated. They see The Credit Woodlands as a faster route, rather than a residential community. Due to their speed, the number of people not stopping at the stop sign is also increasing, which is alarming and dangerous, especially for those living on Loconder Court, because drivers do not always look that direction.

Additionally, it has become a popular road for pleasure speed drivers. Their modified engines and exhaust systems announce to everyone that they are racing down our streets. It is unsafe and disruptive to have these noisy cars and motorcycles use our street as a racing stretch for joy rides. Even at 11:00 pm (and 1:40 am last night!) there are routinely cars and motorcycles speeding down our road and disrupting our sleep. I have tried calling the police, but it is hard for the police to catch them in the act since they are moving so fast. By the time the police get here, it is too late.

Often, when we go for a walk in the evenings, we jump because the cars are so loud. I have even covered my ears when two bikes flew down the road, one after the other, both with modified systems. This was the most extreme case, but it is certainly not the only time when we have been startled and disrupted by the noisy vehicles. It is incredibly selfish and unacceptable for these persons to disrupt everyone else, since their actions make us uncomfortable to the point of jumping, covering our ears, and not enjoying our walks outside.

Most of all, this noise pollution is disrupting our sleep and is making it impossible for us to enjoy living in our home. There is no reason why I should be laying awake at 1:00 in the morning wondering if I should call the police or searching about sound barriers and other ways to get a full night’s sleep! I have tried stacking a huge pile of wood chips (nearly 20 cubic yards!) to absorb the sound, but the problem is bigger than that. In fact, my husband can’t even sleep upstairs anymore at all. He has moved down to the sofa in the basement because that is the only place where he can sleep now due to the constant noise.

Despite loving our home, our neighbours, and our community, we feel pushed into exploring our housing options. We do not want to move, and it is not an economical time to move, but most of all, we absolutely love our house, our garden, our friendly neighbours, the mature trees, the cheerful birds, the silver (black) fox, the naughty squirrels (sometimes), the Riverwood Conservancy, the location, the nearby Chinatown, the restaurants, and so on. As you can tell, we do not want to move.

Yet, it is now difficult to relax outside in our yard, despite living in such a gorgeous natural area with gardens, trees, and so many peaceful birds singing to us. When we moved here, this was an area for nature-lovers and a community filled with retirees who appreciate a quiet lifestyle in a calm, friendly neighbourhood. It is filled with diverse people who say hi to each other as they pass on the streets. We want that peace and quiet back! This is not what we signed up for and we need this to stop!

Our community is filled with elderly persons, many of whom have lived here for years. Action needs to be taken to reduce this stressful situation for them since they are already worried about traffic safety and the increased busyness is making them even more concerned. Additionally, they feel the weight of the noise pollution on their health, and so I am taking action. We neighbours have talked about the changes and talked about our concerns. Now, it is time to do something about it!

This situation is not hopeless, so please take action to save our community! A traffic bump (or two or three) would discourage drivers from speeding through our community. It would slow drivers down so they could make safe choices and that would also reduce the amount of noise pollution. Additionally, our road would not be as appealing to racers and we would be able to sleep again! Please help us!

With many thanks,
David Xiang Gao and Alaina Bell Gao