Report Recommends Removing Playground Zones

[Mean Mr. Mustard]

Originally Posted by fotze

I noticed in Vancouver there seems to be very few of them. Is that true.

Well that is sortof true - they are putting a large number of new signs up though. Slow down - junkie ahead

[Looger]

Originally Posted by Mean Mr. Mustard

Well that is sortof true - they are putting a large number of new signs up though. Slow down - junkie ahead

ah, the province of my birth. so much pride.

friend of mine was just down there, a stranger to vancouver, and he was shocked because locals he knew were surprised that he'd gotten close enough to give money and shake hands with some street junkies. i guess he hadn't heard of all those AIDS-infected needle stabbings!

[Shawnski]

Story on CBC just said there are 840 in Calgary and FOUR in Edmonton.

[Barnes]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

good. i live in Inglewood right near a playground zone that i've NEVER seen anyone use and it's fenced in to boot. there is absolutly no reason for the speed to be reduced by 20km/h in that area

The one by the old brewery? Dumb! There's one on Bonaventure just before you turn onto centre st s where you can't even see the playground.

[Shazam]

Calgary's implementation of a "playground zone" is very unique. What most jurisdictions have are zones where IF there are children present, then you must slow down.

Also, I HATE that damned "1 hour after sunset" rule. In summer, this can be at midnight! Or when it's really cloudy, I have zero idea when "sunset" was.

Many of the signs downtown were put up because of extensive complaints by residents. So, the city would install playground equipment (there needs to be at least three pieces of equipment) so that they could post the signs. That's why there's that stupid, stupid, stupid playground zone on Elbow Drive by the whiniest residents in the world, Mount Royal/Britannia/etc. Residents there thought "poor" people were shortcutting through their communities, when, ironically, the city did studies there and discovered that it's actually the residents that live in those communities that go ape**** in the communities. Yeah, no ****.

But I guess this is the norm in a city where people think that traffic circles slow down traffic.

[pope04]

Originally Posted by Shazam

Also, I HATE that damned "1 hour after sunset" rule. In summer, this can be at midnight! Or when it's really cloudy, I have zero idea when "sunset" was.

And there are so many kids in the playground at sunrise.

[edn88]

I was thrilled when I saw this in the paper. I just hope the gutless politicians in city hall have the backbone to make it so.

1. If you are a parent you should be supervising your children in playgrounds in the first place
2. If you are a parent - teach your kids not play in traffic
3. If you are a driver and see kids that have not been taught to stay away from the road, slow down, whether you are in a school zone, playground zone or the autobahn - hell we do it when we see wildlife, you would think children would rate.
4. If you are a city planner, don't put play grounds next to busy roads, or at least put a fence up
5. If you are a kid - don't play in traffic

I believe one of the articles in the paper quoted that there was no difference in safety in cities without playground zones. Of the school zones I drive by regularly, less than 1 in 20 have ever had any number of children in them. I am sure that there is a policing effort to enforce all of these zones, and perhaps the policing could be used elsewhere.

[ricosuave]

Originally Posted by Shazam

Calgary's implementation of a "playground zone" is very unique. What most jurisdictions have are zones where IF there are children present, then you must slow down.

Also, I HATE that damned "1 hour after sunset" rule. In summer, this can be at midnight! Or when it's really cloudy, I have zero idea when "sunset" was.

Many of the signs downtown were put up because of extensive complaints by residents. So, the city would install playground equipment (there needs to be at least three pieces of equipment) so that they could post the signs. That's why there's that stupid, stupid, stupid playground zone on Elbow Drive by the whiniest residents in the world, Mount Royal/Britannia/etc. Residents there thought "poor" people were shortcutting through their communities, when, ironically, the city did studies there and discovered that it's actually the residents that live in those communities that go ape**** in the communities. Yeah, no ****.

But I guess this is the norm in a city where people think that traffic circles slow down traffic.

well said, thank you

[Mean Mr. Mustard]

Originally Posted by edn88

I was thrilled when I saw this in the paper. I just hope the gutless politicians in city hall have the backbone to make it so.

1. If you are a parent you should be supervising your children in playgrounds in the first place

What? At what age do the parents cut the cord and allow their children to go to the playground on their own or walk to school on their own? It really seems to me as though the parents can't be everyone and are trusting the safety of their children to everyone on the road.

Originally Posted by edn88

2. If you are a parent - teach your kids not play in traffic

Ok I can agree with this but this shouldn't overtake responsible driing practices.

Originally Posted by edn88

3. If you are a driver and see kids that have not been taught to stay away from the road, slow down, whether you are in a school zone, playground zone or the autobahn - hell we do it when we see wildlife, you would think children would rate.

Agreed and what better way to do this than by instituting slower speed limits in areas where children would congregate such as I don't know, playgrounds and schools (off the top of my head that is)

Originally Posted by edn88

4. If you are a city planner, don't put play grounds next to busy roads, or at least put a fence up

Agreed - preventitive planning.

Originally Posted by edn88

5. If you are a kid - don't play in traffic

this is the point that I think you are way off base on - blaming the child for getting hit is foolish. I say that because of a family friend whose son died when he was hit by a van in 1998 in a school zone I believe when he dropped a toy and went to pick it up. To blame the kid for getting hit is foolish.

Originally Posted by edn88

I believe one of the articles in the paper quoted that there was no difference in safety in cities without playground zones. Of the school zones I drive by regularly, less than 1 in 20 have ever had any number of children in them. I am sure that there is a policing effort to enforce all of these zones, and perhaps the policing could be used elsewhere.

Policing could be used elsewhere than at least working towards ensuring that people will slow down in areas where there are schools? You make it sound like it is such a trivial issue. Many people don't slow down with lower speed limits so how does your plan make those who don't slow down now slow down. At least with fines for speeding there is the knowledge that they could pay significant fines for speeding thus slowing some people down.

[Shazam]

I don't have any problem with the concept of playground zones. I do have a problem with how they're being abused by a very vocal, very small minority, and by their shoddy implementation. They've just become very frustrating.

Guys in edn88 just want to be able to drive any way they see fit, everybody else be damned.

[mykalberta]

I couldnt believe the 8XX number in Calgary compared to 4 in Edmonton, that was just mind boggling. This effort will likely reduce it to 7XX or maybe even 6XX if McIssac gets on it (he seems to be the only compitent one on city council). Likely the NIMBY's will have thier way.

MYK

[GrrlGoalie33]

I guess more the point in posting this thread was not that they were taking the playground zones away, but their justification of it.

People don't obey them anyway, so we're just going to get rid of them was the basic sentiment.

What's next?

[Ayrahb]

Originally Posted by Shazam

Calgary's implementation of a "playground zone" is very unique. What most jurisdictions have are zones where IF there are children present, then you must slow down.

Also, I HATE that damned "1 hour after sunset" rule. In summer, this can be at midnight! Or when it's really cloudy, I have zero idea when "sunset" was.

Many of the signs downtown were put up because of extensive complaints by residents. So, the city would install playground equipment (there needs to be at least three pieces of equipment) so that they could post the signs. That's why there's that stupid, stupid, stupid playground zone on Elbow Drive by the whiniest residents in the world, Mount Royal/Britannia/etc. Residents there thought "poor" people were shortcutting through their communities, when, ironically, the city did studies there and discovered that it's actually the residents that live in those communities that go ape**** in the communities. Yeah, no ****.

But I guess this is the norm in a city where people think that traffic circles slow down traffic.

No kidding. Maybe we should all get an almanac or something at the time of registering our cars so that we know when to drive 30.

Also, I would be really tempted to call Child Welfare if I saw a child in the playground at -30C, or at 10pm in the summer.

I don't get why the City doesn't put electronic playground zone signs that are turned on between certain hours, at a certain temperature range and operated by parents like the flashing crosswalk sign.

[Mr.Coffee]

Originally Posted by Ayrahb

No kidding. Maybe we should all get an almanac or something at the time of registering our cars so that we know when to drive 30.

Also, I would be really tempted to call Child Welfare if I saw a child in the playground at -30C, or at 10pm in the summer.

I don't get why the City doesn't put electronic playground zone signs that are turned on between certain hours, at a certain temperature range and operated by parents like the flashing crosswalk sign.

Kids don't use playgrounds anymore. Don't people realise this yet? They play nintendo or playstation for 10 hours a day and then after their minds are nice and twisted go and make grenades in their bedroom until about age 16 and then come to school with a machine gun and unload on innocent civilians.

Not seeing where playground zones are affective for any of those situations.

[JohnnyFlame]

Originally Posted by Frankster

I guess more the point in posting this thread was not that they were taking the playground zones away, but their justification of it.

People don't obey them anyway, so we're just going to get rid of them was the basic sentiment.

What's next?

The point isn't that there is a throwing up of hands and abandonment of protection of children because people don't obey. The point is there are so, so many TOTALLY stupid playground zones that people are sick of them and drive accordingly.

Politicians are ballless losers 95% of the time. So much crap instituted that is just pandering. Cut out every last one that is irrelevant. Put speed bumps on the ones that are and I'll bet ya dang near everybody is happy and safe!!!

[Bobblehead]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

Kids don't use playgrounds anymore. Don't people realise this yet? They play nintendo or playstation for 10 hours a day and then after their minds are nice and twisted go and make grenades in their bedroom until about age 16 and then come to school with a machine gun and unload on innocent civilians.

My wife is very unhappy right now. She opened the side door the other day and there was a strange kid beside the house with a gun in his hand. It turns out that this was a friend of a neighbour, and it was a toy gun, but that didn't lessen the initial shock.
I caught another one there Wednesday and had to ask them not trespass anymore.
I hate feeling like a prude - kids are being kids - but when I don't recognize them, they are sneaking through my backyard, and a couple of them have fairly realistic looking toy guns; it makes me more than a little nervous.

[Reaper]

Not to thread hijack too much but as far as pedestrian safety goes what burns my ass the most is when drivers speed in residential areas and show no deference to pedestrians.

It blows my mind how many people don't know that the pedestrian has the right of way at any intersection or "T" regardless of whether the crosswalk is marked or not.

It is so bad in the northeast part of Evergreen right off James McKevitt. I'll be waiting at the corner to cross the street while traffic is whizzing by at 70 kmh when an observant driver will stop to allow me to cross only to have cars coming in the opposite direction braking at the last possible second because they didn't see me crossing the road. I'm talking about during the day, not at night. It's not like you can't see me either. I'm 6'3" and 245lbs so I stand out.

Last week, I crossed the street right behind a small boy on a bike (I was 4 feet behind him) because the cars had stopped in the near lanes. This woman who was speeding in a minivan in the far lanes practically did a brake stand because she wasn't paying attention. Then she gives me a dirty look as if her idiocy was my fault so I yelled at her to slow down because it was a residential area. So, she gave me the finger!

I swear, you should be allowed to drag people out of their cars by their hair and beat the living **** out of them when they make driving errors that could have easily resulted in injuries or death if their timing had been off by a split second.

[habernac]

people don't give a crap. They're in too much of a rush. Some moron downtown yesterday was 3 cars back from the light that had turned green, everyone at this intersection has to turn right. He starts blaring the horn in his Jaguar. I look over and his window is open. "I see, you want them to run down the pedestrians in the crosswalk, do you?" I rolled my eyes at him and he rolled up the window. The extra 20 seconds isn't going to ruin your day.

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by Reaper

It blows my mind how many people don't know that the pedestrian has the right of way at any intersection or "T" regardless of whether the crosswalk is marked or not.

Question for you- do you stick your arm out to indicate that you want to cross there? I ask because often while driving it is very hard to tell if somebody is looking to cross, or just standing there.

[jolinar of malkshor]

Originally Posted by habernac

people don't give a crap. They're in too much of a rush. Some moron downtown yesterday was 3 cars back from the light that had turned green, everyone at this intersection has to turn right. He starts blaring the horn in his Jaguar. I look over and his window is open. "I see, you want them to run down the pedestrians in the crosswalk, do you?" I rolled my eyes at him and he rolled up the window. The extra 20 seconds isn't going to ruin your day.

Your right, but a lot has to be put on the city planners who can't think more than a year ahead of them. So many people are frustrated with the traffic situation it's only a matter of time before people stop obeying traffic laws inorder to get home within a reasonable amount of time.

Is it right? No. But thats how the world works.