Sun Leisure trailer park residents launch petition to help traffic on Hwy 97

Photo: Casey Richardson

A two-vehicle crash had traffic down to one lane in either direction on Highway 97 in front of the Sun Leisure Trailer park

Locals are pleading to the City of Penticton and the Ministry of Transportation to address the intersection of Highway 97 and access road to the Sun Leisure trailer park. A petition was started on Friday after one resident was fed up with the continuous accidents. 

Jfraya Des Roches—who started the petition— is a former resident of the trailer park and her grandparents still reside in the area. 

“Every year it's horrendous trying to get in and out of there, with the channel and the accidents that happen because everyone’s trying to turn left, and there’s no safe way to do it onto the highway.” 

After one of Roches’ family members got into an accident at that intersection, they decided it was time to call attention to the problem.  

“I am taking all my information, emails, concerns, plans to the city council,” Roches said. “We also have a traffic safety concern I’d like to file with them, as well as all the signatories with the petition.” 

She added that every year there are multiple injuries and car accidents due to this lack of planning and modernizing the roads to adjust to traffic flow, especially with tourism levels increasing. 

Roches also has concerns about the city adding an additional parking lot for people leaving their cars for the channel float, without solving the other issues. 

“We’re just hoping that the petition makes enough noise that the city sees that there’s an issue.” 

So far, 427 people have signed the petition. It is available online here.