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Islanders point to road safety as barrier to walking

With a laugh and the assurance that she was not hurt, Alice Jennings says it was years ago that she nearly fell off a cliff walking home from work along Dorman Road, but the road itself has changed little.
ITMP
Last weekend’s ITMP neighbourhood meet-up in Queen Charlotte Heights.

With a laugh and the assurance that she was not hurt, Alice Jennings says it was years ago that she nearly fell off a cliff walking home from work along Dorman Road, but the road itself has changed little.
“At our meeting this weekend, people said that pedestrians need to walk against the flow of traffic, but on Dorman road, that means your walking on the edge of a very steep hill,” she says, referring to last weekend’s Integrated Transportation Master Plan (ITMP)neighbourhood meet-up in Queen Charlotte Heights . “If you’re walking against the flow of traffic and you step aside to let a car pass, you’ll fall off a cliff. A barrier of some kind would be very helpful, I think.”
Cindy Nicholson, who lives at the upper-end of Taylor Way, also has concerns about cliffs and safety.
“When I’m walking to the Cove, I walk with the flow of traffic not against, otherwise I am walking along the bottom of a cliff,” she says. “As a pedestrian, there is one particular blindspot where I worry that cars will move out of the way when they do see me, then be at risk of running in to oncoming traffic. I don’t feel good about this even when I am driving.”
Municipal planner Emma Chow says the concerns mentioned by Jennings and Nicholson fit in with one of the over-arching themes that has come up over the course of a year surveying islanders about their transportation needs and experiences.
“Even if people are close enough to the Cove to walk,” says Chow, “they often feel it is to dangerous to do so.”
The ITMP is currently in the third of five stages, and neighbourhood meet-ups are being held in order to engage stakeholders and identify key issues and solutions.
On the issue of pedestrian and cyclist safety, Chow points to the creation of paths as a possible solution.
“Paths need to be distinguished from trails,” says Chow. “We have lots of trails on Bowen, but paths exist to help you get from A to B safely. Ideally, it would be great to have paved paths that are big enough for both cyclists and pedestrians.”
Councilor Melanie Mason says that sometimes even simpler solutions could go a long way to help people get around by foot or bicycle.
“In the areas closer to the Cove especially, doing things like widening the shoulder could make a big difference,” says Mason. “But getting this master plan done will be key to getting funding for any of the solutions out there. When it comes to facilitating active transportation, both the federal and provincial governments have money, but we’ve got to be able to show what our needs are.”
The Master Plan, she emphasizes, is a long –term one, and will outline what needs to be done over the course of the next 30 to 40 years to improve transportation infrastructure on Bowen Island.
The next IMTP neighbourhood meet-up will take place at the Bowen Island Golf Course on August 13, starting at 10 am.