If you drive Fairview Road south of St. Thomas, you now have to stop at John Wise Line.
Elgin County made the crossroads an all-way stop on Thursday, October 15th. Until now, only John Wise Line traffic had to stop there, and Fairview Road traffic went straight through. The speed limit on Fairview Road also drops to 70 km/h for 2.05 kilometres, starting at Southdale Line and running south past John Wise Line, to about 500 metres beyond it. It used to be 80 km/h.
Every direction is getting oversized stop signs on both the left and right sides of the road, oversized “stop ahead” signs, rumble strips, and red lenses in the overhead beacon. The County says to expect temporary delays while crews finish the work.
The change comes after a long run of crashes. A County staff report in September counted nine crashes involving more than one vehicle at the corner since 2021. They happened when drivers failed to stop at the stop sign or failed to yield to the through traffic on Fairview Road. The report said those crashes “have typically been severe due to prevailing speeds through the intersection,” which means traffic was moving fast. On August 20th, three vehicles collided there and ten people were hurt, five of them with life-threatening injuries, as LocVox reported at the time.
The extra stop sign on the left side is there because an unusually high share of the crashes involved a driver who did not stop. The whole package was estimated to cost $10,000.
A resident, Bernie Schuit, first asked County council for a safety review of the corner with a petition in December 2025. Elgin County’s Committee of the Whole recommended the plan in September, as LocVox reported then. On October 13th, County council’s agenda put that recommendation up for adoption, along with the by-laws to make it law, including By-law 26-39 for the new Fairview Road speed zone. The change took effect two days later.
The corner sits just outside the city in Central Elgin, but Fairview Road and John Wise Line are both County roads. Fairview Road becomes Fairview Avenue as it runs north into St. Thomas.
The County says it will look at the corner again in its next Transportation Master Plan, planned for 2030. As the area around it grows, that review will decide whether it needs traffic lights or a roundabout.
Who goes first
The County’s notice reminds everyone how an all-way stop works:
- The first vehicle to come to a complete stop goes first.
- If two vehicles stop at the same time, the one on the left lets the one on the right go first.
- When turning left, wait for oncoming traffic to pass or turn, and for people crossing on foot.
- When turning right, wait for anyone crossing in your path.
Every road user, not just drivers, must come to a complete stop from every direction and follow the new speed limit.
Sources: Elgin County, “Fairview Road and John Wise Line Safety Enhancements: All-Way Stop Controlled Intersection,” October 15, 2026, Elgin County, staff report ENG 26-20, Fairview Road and John Wise Line Safety Enhancements, Elgin County Council agenda, October 13, 2026
By Anthony Zruna · About the LocVox Newsroom
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