Glebe residents seek improved pedestrian safety along Bronson

Posted by The Gridlock on Nov 25, 2014 in Second Edition | 1 comment

By Shannon Moore

 

 

John Woodhouse can feel every crack and bump in the sidewalk on Bronson.

Unlike pedestrians whose feet absorb the changes, he said, his electric wheelchair struggles to move over them, making it uncomfortable and dangerous for him to travel along the street.

“I’m very concerned about curbs and the state of the sidewalk, because I’m a four-season driver,” he said.

Woodhouse is one of a dozen individuals who gathered on Saturday to discuss changes to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists along Bronson Avenue in the Glebe.

“Bronson is such a highway in the middle of the city. It’s very noisy and people like to speed up,” Woodhouse said. “There’s absolutely no concern for pedestrians.”

 

The meeting was organized by the Glebe Community Association and Ecology Ottawa, a non-profit organization that often collects advice from residents on safety issues, to pass onto City Hall. Ecology Ottawa conducted an audit because the section of Bronson from Highway 417 to Colonel By Drive is scheduled for reconstruction when water mains and sewers are replaced between 2015 and 2018.

“I think that doing an audit is terrific because you can look at the things that are really problem areas and have them addressed before the construction starts,” said Dianne Breton, chair of the volunteer group Ottawa Seniors’ Transportation Committee.

Karen Hawley, the Community Network Coordinator of Ecology Ottawa, echoed this statement.

“The whole street will be upended, so we figured that it’s a great opportunity to get suggestions from the community,” she said.

Resident Steve Harris said he wants safe crossings on Bronson so that people on both sides of the street feel part of the same neighbourhood.

“One of the reasons I got involved,” he said, “is that this road separates this neighbourhood from the rest of the Glebe. It’s a real barrier, because you feel you can’t actually walk across it.”

“It’s a beautiful area and it’s just cut off by this street. It doesn’t have to be,” he said.

Volunteer and cyclist Les Whitney agreed with Harris.

“There has to be connectivity. You really can’t avoid Bronson,” Whitney said.

The audit consisted of 31 questions pertaining to sidewalks, bike lanes, curbs, traffic lights, speed limits, bus shelters and more.

Resident Jason Vallis lives on Bronson and is mostly concerned about the speed of cars driving by. He has a newborn baby and said he fears for the safety of his family.

“I appreciate that it’s a regional road and that it’s an arterial route, but for me it’s the speed and the lack of enforcement,” he said. “This is a dangerous road, and we have an opportunity to get drivers to slow down and realize that people live here.”

The speed limit in the area is 50 kilometres per hour, but residents feel that drivers frequently travel at least 15 to 20 kilometres per hour faster.

In October 2012, 27-year-old Carleton University student Krista Johnson was killed while cycling on Bronson at Holmwood Avenue.

 

RT @carletonsafety: We’re saddened by the death of CU student Krista Johnson. Deepest sympathies go to friends & family http://t.co/b2b0yMJW

— Carleton University (@Carleton_U) October 19, 2012

RIP #KristaJohnson, cyclist killed in #Ottawa on Bronson Ave. #Pembroke has lost one of its best and brightest http://t.co/O7owD4V7 — CJ Frederick (@PoweredbyPoodle) October 22, 2012

 

While some improvements to Bronson near Carleton have already been made, including brighter streetlights and new bike lanes, residents feel more changes are needed. Coun. David Chernushenko plans to redesign the existing ramps between Bronson and Colonel By, and improve pedestrian crossings in the area.

Former Capital Ward candidate Scott Blurton participated in the audit, and hopes to see Chernushenko implement the changes that he proposed in his platform.

“Chernushenko planned to turn this into a complete street, which I think would be a huge change. It would be interesting to see how that would work and the impact that it would have on the rest of the city,” he said.

Chernushenko could not be reached for comment.

For now, the community is doing what they can to ensure the safety of its residents. When completed, the results of the audit will be sent to Chernushenko and city staff for consideration.

“We want to establish a vision of what can be improved,” said Harris.

“This is an area that is in the process of change,” added Whitney. “We’ll see how the city responds.”