The crosswalk at Uplands Rd. and McRobb Ave, seen here, will soon have flashing beacons. (Spencer Sterritt/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

CROSSWALK SAFETY

$300K to be spent upgrading five Nanaimo intersections and crossings

May 6, 2020 | 11:38 AM

NANAIMO — Rapid flashing beacons will be installed at intersections both major and minor throughout Nanaimo.

A City of Nanaimo staff report about funding the upgrades was warmly received by councillors during their Monday, May 4 meeting. Every year $300,000 is included in the budget for upgrades to sidewalks, intersections and crosswalks to be decided by council.

Coun. Erin Hemmens said she understood the draw of spending the entire $300,000 on sidewalks, which wouldn’t cover the entire cost of many projects, but voted in favour of upgrading intersections.

“Of course we want more sidewalks, particularly where kids are involved. But we seem to get more bang for our buck doing intersections, which are the most dangerous part of the road.”

Two intersections, at Uplands Rd. at McRobb Ave. and Hammond Bay Rd. at Nottingham Dr., will receive flashing beacon to indicate when a pedestrian wants to cross.

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The beacons and curb extensions will also be installed at two locations fairly close to each other: Victoria Rd. at Esplanade St. and Front St. at Port Dr. Both are in the downtown core and considered part of the Downtown Mobility Hub.

“This will help tie together the new transit exchange and Front St. expansion,” Hemmens said. “There’s a lot of people dashing across that road all the time.”

Beacons and curb extensions will also be installed on Waddington Rd. at St. George Cres.

Adding flashing beacons was not considered at the Bruce Ave. and Albion St. intersection in the Harewood neighbourhood, despite a petition signed by hundreds being submitted to Council.

The petition was submitted after scrutiny was renewed on the intersection due to a crash which left 24-year-old Daisy Collis with life-threatening injuries.

She was hit by a car in the evening of Nov. 11 and was believed to be wearing dark, non-reflective clothing.

Nanaimo RCMP said the driver of the vehicle likely did not see Collis in the unlit crosswalk.

The crossing was previously highlighted by the Nanaimo RCMP as a problematic spot for pedestrian safety.

At the time, Nanaimo’s manager of transportation Jamie Rose told NanaimoNewsNOW the crossing wasn’t marked as needing changes in a 2008 review and it was being reanalyzed.

Collis is now taking the City of Nanaimo to court, filing a notice of civil claim in mid-March 2020.

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