Huron County approves budget, omits Airport Line roundabout despite legal concerns
- 3 hours ago
- 5 min read
By Dan Rolph
Huron County council has approved its 2026 budget, omitting the proposed roundabout at County Road 83 and Airport Line despite warnings that the county could be liable if someone is injured at the busy intersection.
The budget that was approved by council at the March 18 meeting will see the county’s tax rate increase by 2.78 per cent, resulting in the median residential property adding just over $34 to its annual tax bill. The median farm property will tack on another $39 to its taxes.
Despite the budget’s approval, it was the continued debate over a proposed roundabout at the intersection just west of Exeter that made up the bulk of the meeting.
The project would have been funded through gas tax funding, which is provided to municipalities throughout Ontario by the provincial government, meaning the project’s removal from the budget has little effect on the overall levy since it would not have been funded through property taxes or reserves.
A motion that would have opened the door to rescinding council’s move in February that removed the roundabout from this year’s budget failed to garner the two-thirds majority it needed in the chambers during that March 18 meeting.
Supporting that motion were councillors George Finch, Jim Dietrich, Glen McNeil, Jamie Heffer, John Becker, Alvin McLellan, Doug Harding and Warden Jamie Heffer. Those opposed were councillors Paul Klopp, Trevor Bazinet, Leah Noel, Bill Vanstone, Bernie MacLellan, Marg Anderson and Jim Ginn.
The deferral of the roundabout marks the second time county council has pushed back the project that could have cost $3.2 million, having first delayed the project in 2025 with the intent of moving it forward in 2026.
Since a roundabout was identified by consultants B.M. Ross as the preferred solution to the intersection’s safety woes, the county has undergone the process of preparing the site for construction, including purchasing surrounding lands and completing the design process that settled on a single-lane roundabout for the site.
According to a report presented during the meeting, there were 10 collisions from 2021 to 2025 at the intersection—a reduction from the 16 collisions seen from 2017 to 2021. Though there was a drop in total collisions, both periods saw severe crashes and crashes that resulted in injuries.
Collisions seen at the intersection often involve turning movements, angle collisions or drivers failing to stop.
The report states, “These types of collisions are commonly associated with rural two way stop controlled intersections where drivers on the minor road must judge gaps in higher speed traffic on the major road. Further to note is the presence of serious injury collisions in both analysis periods, which is generally a good indication that current measures are not sufficient.”
Also included in the report was an analysis from the county’s legal counsel. That analysis found that deferring the roundabout project for another year or cancelling it altogether could leave the county legally liable if a serious collision occurs after identifying the intersection as a safety concern.
“If the project were cancelled or significantly delayed and a serious collision occurred, the county could face potential negligence claims on the basis that it was aware of the hazard and had already identified a reasonable improvement,” the report reads.
Larry Shapton, a resident who lives near the intersection, spoke to council through a delegation at the meeting about how he and other neighbouring property owners were disappointed in council’s initial decision to remove the project from the 2026 budget in February during budget deliberations.
“We just don’t understand,” he said. “We were very shocked and upset.
“Someone will continue to get hurt or killed at that corner, with the council well aware of the risk. They recognized it as early as 2021, and they’re still not going to act on it.”
Shapton pointed to a May 15 incident at the intersection where emergency crews responded to a collision involving a pickup truck and another vehicle that resulted in at least one injury as an example of the risks at the intersection.
“The big one, I feel, is going to happen,” he said.
Following Shapton’s comments, Coun. Jim Ginn labelled the intersection’s dangers as an enforcement concern that may not need a roundabout to improve safety, instead pointing to a stronger police presence as a solution.
“We have thousands of intersections in Huron County that are not flat or on hills or on bends,” he said. “This intersection, in my mind, is no more dangerous. We just need to enforce the laws that are in place.”
Coun. George Finch, a former police officer, described viewing the intersection as an enforcement issue as “reactive,” agreeing with the county’s staff and consultants.
“When I was policing, I used to sit at that intersection and watch them go through, continuously near misses, and then I would go and give them a ticket,” he said. “I have given tickets to people who have gone through the stop sign several times.
“This is an engineering problem. We have to get that through our heads. We are not experts.”
While speaking to councillors, Huron County public works director Imran Khalid echoed Finch’s comments.
“We do think that this is an engineering issue,” he said. “There are improvements that you can make to that intersection for improving safety.
“Enforcement will not address the root cause of the collisions.”
Coun. Bernie MacLellan disagreed with the county’s public works director.
“It’s all 90-degree corners,” he said. “The sightlines do not appear to be a problem.
“Accidents happen at every corner,” he added, noting he also wasn’t convinced by the county’s legal counsel regarding liability risks.
Finch said the roadway is one of the busiest in the county, and that traffic volumes will only get worse—particularly as the busy tourism season sees travellers taking the route as they drive toward the lakeshore.
“To take the position of ‘well let’s wait and see what happens’ all while more collisions occur, respectfully, is not a sign of good leadership,” said Finch. “I am personally not willing to risk anyone’s life and never have been. Kicking it to the next council is also, respectfully, irresponsible and completely unconscionable.”
Coun. Trevor Bazinet said he was concerned about the county setting a precedent if they moved forward with a roundabout at the intersection while taking issue with Finch’s comments.
“I’m a little tired of having leadership being questioned in this council chambers,” he said. “I think we’re all good leaders. We’re here to make tough decisions, and we don’t always agree. That’s a good thing. That’s democracy.”
Meanwhile, Coun. Glen McNeil said the intersection “haunts” him, and that he is concerned about the county being liable after identifying the area as a safety concern.
“To ignore our legal counsel is at our peril,” he said.