A myriad of amenities are close by, but a couple of thousand south end residents can’t safely reach them without driving 150 metres or so because there is no sidewalk connecting them to the rest of the city.
“It’s definitely a really big safety concern,” said Matthew Mooradian, who lives on the east side of Gordon Street, south of Poppy Drive where the sidewalk ends.
“We see people in wheelchairs, mothers with young children walking on the road,” he said from his kitchen, which looks out onto Gordon. “We’ve actually seen three accidents right out front here.”
Mooradian and his partner, Brett Langlois, moved into the building at 1878 Gordon St. in April. Traffic heading into and out of the city along that corridor is virtually non-stop during the day, they say, estimating a transport truck passes by an average of once per minute and the average vehicle goes by at about 80 km/h – some much faster – while the posted limit is 70 km
“This is just before people realize they have to start driving a little slower,” said Mooradian, referring to the city’s urban boundary.
“There’s never really a break,” added Langlois of vehicles passing by. “Hundreds and hundreds an hour.”
Some traffic is slowed by a set of lights at Gosling Gardens, which sits about 100 metres south of where the sidewalk ends, though it largely allows the Gordon Street traffic to flow.
“You’re a short walk to all the amenities and yet it’s so inaccessible,” said Nancy Shearhart, who is set to move into the same building in January.
“Have you tried walking this in heels?” she said, standing out front of the building, looking at a grassy strip alongside the road. “It’s extremely difficult to walk this strip in heels, especially when it’s icy or muddy. There’s just not a good path.”
City officials are aware of the concerns and hope to see a sidewalk installed there within a couple of years, though there are some issues to overcome first.
“It’s an area with a lot of active development,” said Jennifer Juste, the city’s transportation planning manager. “Typically sidewalks are built by the developer once the development is complete.”
Sidewalks are planned along both sides of the road, she said, noting each is a different scenario.
On the west side of Gordon, where there the sidewalk gap is about 70 metres long, there is a “conflict” with underground gas and other utility lines, Juste said.
“We’re working with the developer to sort that all out and determine the best way forward to provide the sidewalk,” she said. “There’s a lot of moving pieces at this point.”
The situation on the east side, where 1878 Gordon St. sits, is a bit more complicated.
That missing section, about 100 metres long, will need to be assessed and scored among other sidewalk gaps throughout the city. Also, the city doesn’t own a right of way across one of the properties in the gap, Juste explained.
“That’s a challenge we’re facing in a number of locations, where the development hasn’t come yet and we don’t own the public right of way to put in a sidewalk,” she said, adding a group of city staff is working on an “interim solution” for such spots.
“We don’t want to build sidewalks twice and charge taxpayers twice. We’re trying to find a way of doing this that makes sense.”
When the assessment is done, she said the east sidewalk will rank higher than many others because of traffic volume and speeds.
Mooradian is familiar with the city’s position but doesn’t feel the situation is being taken seriously enough.
“We’ve shared these experiences, they just don’t seem to mind,” he said of reaching out to the city and elected officials. “Every time is just a generic response that doesn’t really go anywhere.”
Someone, it’s not clear who, has posted flyers on the traffic signal polls at Gosling Gardens urging people to contact the city, Mayor Cam Guthrie and local councillor Mark MacKinnon with their concerns about the lack of sidewalk in the area.
