14 - Sunday, November 26 , 1989 - North Shore News DES HEWITT HAS BEEN SAVING DRIVERS SECONDS FOR 16 YEARS bids farewell WY traffic switcher NEWS photo Mike Wakatield FOR THE past 16 years, Des Hewitt has been lighting up the lives of rush-hour drivers passing through the Taylor Way and Marine Drive intersection. Hewitt, who recently retired, manually switched traffic lights to reguiate the flow of treffic at one of the most heavily-used intersections on the North Shore. Comp T/A jHRI FOR A LIMITED TI ME while we're celebrating our Grand Opening everything in the Gallery is On Sale at remarkable discounts! 185/60HR14 195/60HR14 215/60HR14 195/60HR15 205/60HR15 215/60HR15 RADIAL TA WR P195/60SR14 P215/60SR14 5520 Minoru Blvd. Richmond, Tel.: 273-0155 S THUR. ihe 9 p OSAT. fiancin SUN. M030), PARA MOUN ai PORRIORE : @ Deep biting computzised fread, designed for the rugged Canadian winter FOR THE past !6 years and two months Des Hewitt has been sav- ing seconds for rush hour drivers attempting to negotiate their way through the busy Taylor Way and Marine Drive intersection. By MICHAEL BECKER News Reporter Hewitt, 64, recently retired from his job as a West Vancouver traffic bylaw enforcement officer. As an enforcement officer, Hewitt chalk- ed tires, ticketed illegaily-parked vehicles and during the rush-hour crunch, he manually switched traf- fic lights to regulate the flow of traffic at one of the most heavily- used intersections on the North Shore. Approximately 7,500 vehicles wheel their way through the in- tersection between 7 a.m. and 9 am. on weekdays. West Van- couver Police estimate about 60,000 make the trip daily. According to police traffic sec- tion head Sgt. Gunter Wahl, traf- fic lights will continue to be man- ually switched as necessary from a small contro! booth located on the northeast corner of Taylor and Marine. Wahl said the manual switching of lights during rush hours has been in effect at the DON’T PAY LESS! Thait’s right! if you’re paying less, you’re not getting the excelient performance and guaranteed reliability of B.F. Goodrich Tires. If you’re paying more, see us teday, we have the best prices on the North Shore. ALL SZASON LUXURY AND PERFORMANCE THE ADVANTAGE 4A Quality And Style For Canada's Luxury Cars. P185/70SR13 P185/70SR14 P195/70SR14 P205/70SR14 P215/70SR15 P225/70SR15 I WHEN IT SNOWS BFG GOES! si HI SIERRA Steel Belied Wintez for imports and subcompacts. 155SR12 155SR13 165SR13 175/70SR13 185/70SR13 185/70SR14 195/70SR14 corner for as long as he can remember. Said Hewitt: **You throw the switch from the main console and you can control traffic any way you need. As the person there, you know what is happening and when there’s a blockage.”’ Although being bogged down in traffic can be a temper-testing ex- perience, Hewitt claims to have never been the target of wrath from irate North Shore drivers. Added Wahl: ‘‘The main thing is to try to keep it all from bogging down even when the bridge traffic isn’t moving.”’ The traffic flow balancing act becomes trickier this time of year. Ferry traffic from Horseshoe Bay, Christmas shoppers visiting the Marine Drive retail strip and commuters moving between North and West Vancouver as well as to and from Vancouver across the Lions Gate Bridge, all compete for unimpeded movement along the same stretches of asphalt. ‘*The intersection can be plugg- ed from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.,"’ said Wahl. . Hewitt left for Nottingham, England, Sunday to spend five weeks in the country visting with his brother and sister. “Pll miss most the comradeship at the police department,” he said. Sierra All-Season Radial ® * Ideal for imporis and domestic subcompacts. 155SR12 155SR13 165SRA13 175f70SR13 185/70SR13 185/70SR14 195/70SR14 89.39 Troilmaker’ Radial with ice compound