8. A Safer, More Walkable Ward

Why This Matters

I'm not talking about installing speed bumps everywhere. I am talking about using the appropriate safety tool for the appropriate street. That could mean better crossings, sidewalk repairs, accessibility improvements, traffic calming, speed humps, raised crossings, lighting or other measures where the evidence supports them.

Roads have to move vehicles efficiently, but neighbourhood streets are also places where people live, walk dogs, push strollers, use mobility devices, ride bicycles and cross the street. A safer, more walkable ward recognizes all of those users.

What City Hall Can Do

Local roads, sidewalks, crossings, traffic calming, accessibility and much street lighting are municipal responsibilities, subject to engineering standards and Council-approved policies.

Who Needs to Be Involved

Residents, traffic engineering, public works, accessibility advisors, schools and police where enforcement or school-zone issues are relevant.

Cost and Funding

Costs range from low-cost signage or pavement markings to substantial sidewalk, crossing or road reconstruction. The appropriate intervention should be selected only after the problem and options are assessed.

Costs could come from existing road, sidewalk, traffic-safety and accessibility budgets, capital plans and eligible infrastructure grants.

What I Will Do

Use resident reports and collision/speed/accessibility evidence to identify priority locations, request traffic or engineering review where warranted, and advocate for the right tool rather than promising the same treatment on every street.

My Action Plan

1. Build a Ward 6 safety map from resident reports plus objective data: speeding complaints, collisions and near-misses, school routes, missing sidewalks, accessibility barriers, difficult crossings and locations heavily used by seniors or children.

2. Request traffic/engineering studies at priority locations rather than prescribing a favourite solution first. The tool might be a crosswalk, signal timing, curb extension, speed hump, raised crossing, signage, pavement marking, sidewalk, lighting or enforcement.

3. Establish priority corridors connecting homes to schools, parks, transit, shopping and community facilities. Fixing isolated spots is useful; creating continuous safe routes is better.

4. Apply an accessibility lens to every walking project - curb cuts, grades, surface condition, crossing time, snow clearance and room for wheelchairs, walkers and strollers.

5. Coordinate with schools and police where school-zone design or enforcement is part of the problem, while keeping the City's focus on road design that encourages safe behaviour every day.

6. Track before-and-after results where interventions are made - speeds, collisions, complaints and user experience - and adjust when the first solution does not work.

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