Committee to debate pedestrian strategy
Posted Jan 20, 2016 7:24 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
There are simple and cost effective ways to protect pedestrians in Calgary.
That’s the idea behind a report headed to a city committee Wednesday, aimed at reducing the number of people hurt or killed by vehicles to zero.
Councillor Druh Farrell is backing the pedestrian strategy which includes fifty recommendations like lowering the residential speed limit, installing sidewalks in high traffic areas, and adding more rectangular rapid flashing beacons at neighbourhood street crossings.
Farrell tells CityNews, we’ve “underfunded” this segment of the population for too long.
“By justifying Calgary as a driving city, we’ve alienated the pedestrian, and made it a hostile environment, which perpetuates Calgary for being a driving city. So which came first?” Farrell said. “We’re not telling people to get out of their cars. We’re offering an option that feels safe and comfortable.”
Farrell says we’re experiencing a cultural shift: younger people are taking transit and walking more, and Calgary needs to start adapting.
