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Traffic Engineering


The Traffic Engineering section of the Public Works Department is responsible for all matters relating to Signals and Street lighting, Community Traffic Services, and Traffic Planning. General traffic inquiries that do not fit any of the areas mentioned below should call (905) 540-5920, email at trafaa@hamilton.ca, or fax: (905) 540-5926.  To reach the direct contact numbers listed in the table below, first call (905) 546-2424 then the extension listed.


Alphabetical Listing of Services

  Aggressive Driver Hotline Pavement Markings Signing
  Alleyways Pedestrian Walk Times Signals
  Banners Red Light Cameras Speeding
  Barricade Permits Reduced Load Roadways Stop Signs
  By-Laws Road Closures (Permanent) Strategic Road Safety Program
 

Collision Statistics

Road Closures (Temporary) Construction Streetlighting
  Cycling Road Closures (Temporary) Filming Tourism Oriented Directional Signing (TODS)

Driveway Access Permits 

Road Closures (Temporary) Special Events

Traffic Impact Studies

Encroachment Agreements  Road Maintenance Traffic Volumes (Counts)

Locates

Road Cuts Truck Routes

Oversize Truck Permits

Road Occupancy Permits Truck Route Master Plan Study
Parking Roundabouts & Traffic Circles

  Telephone Email Contact Related Links

Aggressive Driver Hotline
The Aggressive Driver Hotline is an automated 24 hour telephone system run by Hamilton Police Service.  If you have observed aggressive driving, we ask that you call and provide a description of the incident, the time of the incident, a description of the car and driver, and the license plate number of the car.  Hamilton Police will then send a cautionary letter to the driver advising them to modify their driving.

(905)
546-1768
n/a Aggressive Driver Hotline
       

Alleyways
Information on city alleys, or to purchase a portion of an alley or close it completely .

x4298 marilyn.preston@hamilton.ca Closure Permit Application
       
Banners
Agreements for banners such as the large banner hung across Main Street in front of City Hall, or those hung from street lights.
x4298 marilyn.preston@hamilton.ca Banner
Application
 


Banner Specs
       
Barricade Permits
See Road Occupancy Permits.
n/a n/a n/a
       

By-Laws
To report a by-law infraction contact the By-Law & Enforcement.  A representative will log your call and a Municipal Law Enforcement Officer will investigate.

x6000 info@hamilton.ca Bylaw & Enforcement
       

Collision Statistics 
Requests for statistics must be made in writing with a signature, email is unacceptable.

x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca 2008 Traffic Safety Status Report

2007 Traffic Safety Status Report

2005-2007 Traffic Safety Status Report
       

Cycling
Information on bike routes, on-street bike lanes, or bike racks .  Requests for copies of the City of Hamilton Bike Routes, Trails, and Parks map.

x2066 daryl.bender@hamilton.ca Cycling Website & Maps
       

Driveway Access Permits
Commercial and high-density
multi-unit residential (high volume) building driveway permits.  Residential driveway permits can be obtained by contacting the Parking Section at x6000, or by visiting their website.

x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca n/a
       
x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca
Locates
Applicants should first call Ontario OneCall at 1-800-400-2255.  For Traffic Signal locates (with a ticket number) contact the Traffic Operations Centre as indicated to the right.
x4600 cindy.mcbay@hamilton.ca n/a
       

Encroachment Agreements
Encroachment agreements allow residents to purchase city land, place newspaper boxes and signs on city property (including a sign attached to a building that simply overhangs a sidewalk), and open sidewalk patios.                  

x4298 marilyn.preston@hamilton.ca Encroachment Agreement
Application


Patio Application
       

Oversize Truck Permits
Carriers are required to have the appropriate liability insurance and must obtain an oversize/overweight permit before operating on city roadways.  There are two types of permits, single trip or annual.

Single Trip Permit $52.73 (no GST)

Annual Overload Permit  $107.58 (no GST)

x6381 johanna.black@hamilton.ca Single Trip Permit

Annual Permit
       

Parking
The Hamilton Municipal Parking System operates out of a different department than Traffic Engineering.  The Hamilton Municipal Parking System is located at 80 Main West at Summers Lane (across from City Hall). 

x6000 parking@hamilton.ca Hamilton Municipal Parking System
       

Pavement Markings
Painting requests of crosswalks, centerlines, edgelines. Please note that we only paint crosswalks at controlled intersections such as stop sign controlled, signalized crossings, and crossing guard locations.

x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca n/a
       

Red Light Cameras
The City is solely responsible for the installation and operation of Red Light Cameras. Legislative issues relating to enforcement and violations are handled by the Province. For example, questions regarding whether or not you will be receiving a ticket from passing through a red light camera location are not something we can answer.  Tickets are typically mailed by the Province within 4 weeks of the offence.  If you received a ticket and have questions, contact the Courthouse at (905) 540-5592.

x5920 trafsig@hamilton.ca Red Light Cameras
       
Reduced Load Roadways
Under the Highway Traffic Act, the province enforces reduced load restrictions on trucks to protect Ontario’s highways during spring thaw (March & April), when road damage is most likely to occur.
x5675 tanya.mkenna@hamilton.ca Maps.Hamilton
       

Road Closures (Permanent)
Information on permanently closing or purchasing a portion of road, alleway, or walkway.

x4298 marilyn.preston@hamilton.ca Closure Permit Application 
       

Road Closures (Temporary) - Construction
For non-city of hamilton related full road closure requests, a permit fee and insurance is required.  Applicant is also responsible for reimbursing all costs associated including warning boards and/or detour boards.

2010 FULL Construction Road Closure Permit Fee = $1,204.59
Temporary Road Closure Permit Application


For information on City of Hamilton Capital Construction Projects in your area, contact the Capital Planning section of Public Works. 

Other Projects
x3909

Capital Projects
x4313
Non-City Temporary Closures
rich.shebib@hamilton.ca

Capital Planning (City Closures)
amy.groleau@hamilton.ca
Capital Planning & Implementation (City Projects)
       

Road Closures (Temporary) - Filming
All filming related requests must first apply through the filming office.  More information can be found on the Hamilton Filming section of the city website.

For filming related road closures, a permit fee and insurance is required.  Applicant is also responsible for reimbursing all costs associated with the closure which may include warning boards and/or detour boards.

2010 Filming FULL Road Closure Permit Fee = $560.39

2009 Filming PARTIAL Road Closure Permit Fee = $210.81

x3909 rich.shebib@hamilton.ca Filming Office
       

Road Closures (Temporary) - Special Events
To hold Special Events (i.e. festivals, road races, or parades) on a city roadway or park, event organizers must first apply through the Community and Special Events office.

For filming related road closures, a permit fee and insurance is required.  Applicant is also responsible for reimbursing all costs associated with the closure which may include warning boards and/or detour boards.

2010 Special Event FULL Road Closure Permit Fee = $560.39

2009 Special Event PARTIAL Road Closure Permit Fee = $210.81

x3909 rich.shebib@hamilton.ca Community and Special Events
       
Road Maintenance
For questions regarding streets plowing, potholes, dusty streets, cracked sidewalks, damaged driveway accesses, curbs needing repair, contact Road Maintenance and Operations.  Maintenance Districts and Snow Priorities maps can be found on the maps.hamilton section of the city website.
(905)
546-2489
roadopsandmaint@hamilton.ca Maps.Hamilton
       

Road Cuts  
Permits relating to road cuts are not handled by Traffic Engineering & Operations.  Requests can be made by contacting the Design section.  Please note:  applicants should first call Ontario One Call at 1-800-400-2255.

x2052 bob.howard@hamilton.ca Design Section
       
Road Occupancy Permits (previously called Barricade Permits)
A Road Occupancy Permit ensures proper approval is obtained and compliance is met, to the satisfaction of the City of Hamilton, for the purposes of temporary/short-term lane closures and/or access, to provide safety to the public on all City of Hamilton roads and sidewalks.  See the website for more information, and a copy of the application.
x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca Road Occupancy
       
Roundabouts & Traffic Circles
The City of Hamilton currently has roundabouts in the Ancaster and Binbrook areas, and smaller retrofit traffic circles in Stoney Creek.  Several more roundabouts are in the design stage, and should be constructed over the next few years.  To find out more on roundabouts in Hamilton, visit the Roundabout Info Page as linked in the far right column.
x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca Roundabout Info Page

Roundabout Policy 

Ancaster Live Webcam
       
Signing
Requests for Traffic Signs such as Regulatory Signs (stops, one-ways, speed limits), and Warning Signs (curves, playground, deaf child) should be made by contacting Community Traffic Services.  All signs (including parking) that are down, missing, damaged, obscured, should contact Traffic Operations at x4600.  If your concern is in regards to a traffic sign missing or damaged, please contact the trouble call hotline at x4376.
x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca n/a
       
Signals
Inquiries relating to traffic signal operations such as new traffic signals, advance left turns, pedestrian signal requests, pedestrian walk times (see the How To Use An Intersection Pedestrian Signal (IPS) and the PedSignalsPBsBrochure.PDFPedestrian Signals and Push-Buttons brochures for related info), red light cameras, etc. please contact the Signals & Systems section by submitting a request in writing or by email.  Requests for signal timings must be submitted in writing with a signature to the mailing address below.

City of Hamilton
Signals and Systems
71 Main Street West
Hamilton,ON
L8P 4Y5

For traffic signal timing information and traffic engineering technical drawings, please fill out the following application and forward it back to our office.

x5920 trafsig@hamilton.ca Red Light Cameras
Signal Eyes
       

Speeding
Requests on speeding vehicles are very common. Effective methods in achieving reductions in speed are enforcement, utilizing the Aggressive Drive Hotline, a the Speed Watch Program.

x5663 chris.vanberkel@hamilton.ca Speed Watch Program
Aggressive Driver Hotline
       
Stop Signs
Requests relating to stop signs are the most common calls we receive. All-way stops are the most common request.  Warrants are used to determine if an all-way stop is required at an intersection.  Please note that a stop sign isn’t installed to reduce speeding, and may in fact have the opposite effect.  Stop signs are designed to assign the right-of-way at an intersection.
x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca n/a
       

Strategic Road Safety Program Action Plan 
The City of Hamilton’s Public Works Department, Police Services, Public Health Services, and their partners have completed a Strategic Road Safety Program.

Vision
To have the safest traffic record in Canada.

Mission
To improve the quality of life of the citizens of Hamilton through a reduction in property damage and injury resulting from traffic collisions.

Primary Goal
Reduce fatal and injury, and property damage only (PD) collisions each by 10% every 3 year period, starting in 2009 from 2008 year end collision levels.

Secondary Goal
The City of Hamilton, Ontario to be recognized as having the safest traffic record in Canada.

Primary Emphasis Areas
Aggressive Driving, Intersections, and Vulnerable Users.

Secondary Emphasis Areas
Older Drivers, Hill Sections, Young Drivers, Curved Sections, Winter Weather, Impaired Driving, Commercial Vehicles, Improper Restraint Usage, Roadway Departure, and Work Zone.

x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca Hamilton Strategic Road Safety Program Action Plan (9mb)
Streetlighting
Inquiries regarding new, failed or "stuck on" street lights should be directed to the Streetlighting Hotline.
(905)
546-2098
peter.locs@hamilton.ca Streetlighting
       
Traffic Impact Studies
The goal of a traffic impact study is to assess potential impacts of traffic changes caused by proposed development on municipal roads and to identify any infrastructure improvements of mitigation measures needed to ensure the road network will operate acceptably and safely upon completion of the proposed development.
x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca Traffic Impact Study Guidelines

Tourism Oriented Directional Signing (TODS)
TODS is a joint program of the Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Transportation.  The blue and white signs are designed to direct traffic to tourist destinations to and from Ministry Highways.  To request information on requesting these signs, contact Toursim Hamilton.



tourism@hamilton.ca Canadian TODS
       
Traffic Volumes (Counts)
Currently the City of Hamilton counts road segments and intersections on a case by case basis.  The network screening program is currently being reviewed and should be completed by years end.  The latest traffic volumes booklet that is available is 1999 and can be downloaded as indicated in the column to the right.
x5675 tanya.mkenna@hamilton.ca 1999 Traffic Volume Book 
       

Truck Routes
The City uses permissive signing rather than restrictive truck route signs to designate where trucks are allowed. This permissive sign system is much more cost effective, easily conveys the message to the drivers, and prevents the proliferation of restrictive signs on all roadways which are not truck routes.

x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca Truck Route Map
Truck Route Master Plan Study
Click here to the Truck Route Study webpage for more information.
 
x5920 trafaa@hamilton.ca