Protected pedestrian crossings

Idea:

Last week on my way to work I noticed that a car had crashed onto this pedestrian crossing on Smythe St, at the round-a-bout downtown. I walk across this exact place twice a day on my commute to work. I was very impressed that a new sign was up by the end of the day. However, I am hoping that this accident (and others like it at this and other intersections) will encourage the city to install bollards at high traffic pedestrian crossings. Please protect the city's pedestrians, and allow us to enjoy walking around the city safely.

Staff Feedback:

Thank you for your idea! Anything located within a certain distance of the edge cannot pose a hazard to road users. Installing a bollard strong enough to stop a vehicle would seriously injure the driver of that vehicle. That is why the engineering best practice is to not install a barrier device that would hurt someone (in this case, a driver) in order to protect someone else (in this case, a pedestrian). The good news, however, is that these type of vehicle-pedestrian collisions are very rare. More common is the situation whereby a vehicle loses control due to bad weather conditions. All of this is, of course, not to say that we don't understand your concerns. We definitely do. And the traffic engineers are continually looking for ways to make Fredericton's streets and roads safer for pedestrians. Thanks again for the question - it is always good to take a hard look at how we do things. We appreciate you caring enough about the topic to send in your thoughts.