BEAVER BANK: The Councillor for Upper/Middle Sackville-Lucasville-Beaver Bank spoke of the speeding concerns she has heard and answered why there’s no crosswalk on a very busy street where school kids cross Beaver Bank Road.
Councillor Lisa Blackburn said she meets monthly with the RCMP Inspector for the area she represents, where she brings community concerns to the table.
“Speeding is always a big concern, so when we let the police know about it, they step up their patrols in those neighborhoods,” she said.
She recalled a recent ride-along she took with an RCMP officer and watched them work.
“It is something that they take very, very seriously,” said Blackburn.
She said there are a number of things to slow down vehicles in our communities. Blackburn said neighborhoods can always apply for speed tables or speed humps to help slow things down.
“The Beaver Bank Community Awareness Association has a digital speed sign that they will deploy by request to neighbors that are concerned about speeding,” said Blackburn. “We have a lot of tools in the tool chest that we can use.”
Blackburn said it’s her understanding the provincial government is working towards some sort of photo radar program, which she feels would go a long way to curbing speeding in the city.
Now speaking about an issue that is always talked about on community groups in the Beaver Bank area, a crosswalk at Majestic Avenue for children attending Beaver Bank-Monarch Drive School from across Beaver Bank Road.
“The issue is that HRM’s traffic authority uses a Canadian standard when it comes to the placement of crosswalks, marked crosswalks,” said Blackburn, “and that Canadian standard says there must be a sidewalk on the other side.
“That’s the whole reason why there’s only one crosswalk in all Beaver Bank road. Where is it? It’s at that intersection where the sidewalk goes from one side of the road.”
However, Blackburn said there might be some hope after Sackville councillor Paul Russell managed to get a crosswalk across a road that doesn’t have sidewalks on both sides. That crosswalk is at Beaver Bank Road and Boxwood.
“When I saw that I kind of went ‘hang on a second and I immediately went to Google maps and said I don’t see a sidewalk there.’
“I got on the phone to Paul and asked him what he did to get it. It sort of sets a precedent now.”
