well I would refer you to the rest of my comment. there are places to cross very nearby. seems like a complete waste. it's not obtuse to think the bridge was a dumb idea.
It's no different then most pedestrian bridges. At Market Mall you can cross south of the mall or at the north end, but the Pedestrian Bridge is convenient right in the middle. Ditto for this one.
I can use the on ramps at 53rd st NW to get on and off Crowchild, why did they build one at Shaganappi and another at Sarcee? Seems like a waste. How many onramps do cars need?
I love pedestrian bridges both as a pedestrian and a driver. As a pedestrian, I really don't care for standing at busy intersections to cross the street. In good weather, it's just annoying, but in bad weather, it's kind of dangerous.
As a driver, obviously having people directed away from intersections, and also not darting across a high flow road is good.
Don't know why anyone would be all grouchy about a nice upgrade like this. I know it costs money, but seriously, we're a really big city now, and stuff like this is what we need to do to continually refine and maintain the livability.
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Not what I said at all and that's a terrible argument. we should put up bridges every 100m then or even 50m. would they get used? yes! build it!
I just question how many pedestrian crossings do we need in an area?
I don't know, but I'd say one is likely a good starting point, so good thing they tried that first.
I'm also fairly certain the city and their chosen consultant have spent more time analyzing the affected area than yourself and are likely significantly more qualified to do so.
But questioning everything everyone else does at their job is cool too.
I live right by the Crappy Tire there and I will say this. I love the bridge. I think it looks awesome, and people that don't live around here won't understand the amount of jay walking that goes on there. I've done it for sure. It can be pretty sketchy.
The problem with the other cross walks is that if you're taking the path from behind the CT (where the bike/walking path is) and want to get to Northland (ie Bestbuy), you have 3 choices:
1) Use the closer cross walk on the Crowchild overpass. It's only a couple hundred feet away. However, when you cross there, by the time you end up crossing Shaganappi, there's literally no path on the other side. You run into the fence of the GM dealership and you have to hop a concrete barrier (while in the middle of a very blind turning lane) and walk through a bunch of thistle-ridden stupid plants to get to Best Buy, or to get to Walmart you have the same bushes and also a huge ditch along the Crowchild exit (with no path) and around the dealership.
2) Walk to the Northland crosswalk. Ok, it's pretty far away. It's probably twice the distance of the other walk at least, and you have to wait for the lights once you get there. It pulls you way out of the way of your trip, it would probably take 10 minutes to make that walk and be in Bestbuy. Of course not a long walk, but when compared to...
3) Run across the street when you feel confident you won't be struck by a vehicle. It takes 20-30 seconds to make the cross this way, it's really a no brainer. That said, the traffic is heavy sometimes, and that's when I go the different routes. Other people are braver/not so smart.
The bridge is needed and got a ton of use this weekend, including by me. So shove it if you don't like it. Form your own municipality down in Mackenzietown or wherever and deal with it.
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That was taken when the bridge wasn't finished yet. You can see the underside of the bridge doesn't actually have a walking platform yet.
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The bridge is in a good location but the really long ramps are definatley
going to discourage some people from using it. They should have added sets of stairs.
The bridge is in a good location but the really long ramps are definatley
going to discourage some people from using it. They should have added sets of stairs.
That's what i was thinking when they built it. By the time you get to the top of the ramp you could already be across the road.
That was taken yesterday, 04-JUL-2015. As a screenshot from my dashcam video:
I stand corrected.
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Reminds me of the pedestrian bridge at Westbrook over Bow Trail. People just jaywalked for years as the long ramps make it 2x the distance.
Finally the city put up a chain link fence, which then had a hole cut in it, and then repaired, and then cut again, and repaired, etc etc. Finally it seems to have lasted more than a month without being cut recently.
Apparently people are so lazy, they are willing to bring bolt cutters and cut through a fence rather than walk up a long ramp.
Reminds me of the pedestrian bridge at Westbrook over Bow Trail. People just jaywalked for years as the long ramps make it 2x the distance.
Finally the city put up a chain link fence, which then had a hole cut in it, and then repaired, and then cut again, and repaired, etc etc. Finally it seems to have lasted more than a month without being cut recently.
Apparently people are so lazy, they are willing to bring bolt cutters and cut through a fence rather than walk up a long ramp.
The people driving who slow down or outright stop for jaywalkers are just as big of an issue. If no one did, jaywalkers would figure it out quickly enough and not risk it.
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The people driving who slow down or outright stop for jaywalkers are just as big of an issue. If no one did, jaywalkers would figure it out quickly enough and not risk it.
No, he's referring to people who slow down or stop on roads for jay walkers that are waiting to cross (which is a huge collision risk). Not people who slow down for people already crossing, which I think most people would do to avoid a collision or having to get a car wash.
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