One question is puzzling drivers passing through the Stave Falls area — why did the dinosaur cross the road?
The City of Mission installed a pair of new wildlife crossing signs on Dewdney Trunk Road that display a tyrannosaurus rex rather than a more traditional moose, deer or bear.
The fossil-fuelled idea is part of the city’s Rural Road Safety Improvement project. Mission’s public works director Tracy Kyle says the signs have been positively received.
“Stave Falls is an area where there have been numerous wildlife fatalities and near misses, so we decided to pilot the signs in Mission,” Kyle said. “Given the unexpected nature of the signs they are effective at getting drivers to be aware of wildlife.”
Similar wildlife crossing signs are used in North Vancouver that feature camels and hippos. Kyle says the city chose a dinosaur because it was a fun, humorous approach that Mission residents would respond positively to.
She hopes the signs protect local wildlife while improving the safety of drivers and passengers that regularly drive on Dewdney Trunk Road.
These types of wildlife awareness signs were suggested to the city by an ICBC road safety coordinator and a local resident.
Mission’s environmental coordinator Kyle D’Appolonia spoke with the resident and worked with other departments to spearhead the project.
The dinosaur signs are a part of Mission’s Rural Road Safety Improvement project that features an array of other upgrades as well. Improvements include other traffic warning signs, a speed reader, roadside delineators, additional centerline pavement markings and recessed pavement reflectors at 18 different locations.
The project emerged after concerns related to road safety, truck traffic and vehicle speeds from Steelhead residents persuaded council to approve a safety study suggesting improvements.
A budget of $200,000 was allocated to implement the improvements. According to the city’s website, work started in March 2023 and is expected to be completed this summer.
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