I wonder how our municipal planners and engineers as well as generations of councillors could possibly ignore the introduction of hazardous conditions as the developers and school boards went blindly ahead with their respective developments.
When subdivisions first started to be developed in the neighbourhood, I actually had to appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board in order to compel the city to put in sidewalks and upgrade Algonquin Road.
A number of years ago, a young woman driver was actually killed on Algonquin Road as a result of questionable road layout.
Prior to the sidewalks, students attending Algonquin Road Public school and Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School had to take their chances on the soft shoulder, winter and summer.
They also had to wait on the shoulder to be picked up by a school bus.
Compounding the safety issues, both the Rainbow District School Board and the Sudbury Catholic District School Board decided to do their own thing.
The Rainbow board closed down two perfectly good schools and made Algonquin Road Public School a sort of mega school on a handkerchief size lot. Dozens of school buses now converge on that school and clutter the road too.
The Catholic board also closed some perfectly good schools and spent millions of dollars building a secondary school and an elementary school at the intersection of Field Street and Algonquin Road — yet more buses.
This intersection is an accident waiting to happen. Field Street and Algonquin Road and the St. Ben’s access meet at the bottom of two hills on Algonquin Road. One hill, from the west, is essentially blind.
The other, from the east, has a blind bend at the top plus an intersection. In slippery, snowy weather, this could make for some serious traffic events. A four way stop sign, traffic lights or even a roundabout will not solve the problem.
It is nothing but appalling design and planning. To compound the problem, a subdivision is planned, accessing Algonquin Road at the brow of the hill to the west — another blind intersection. And it goes on.
Now look at Countryside — the section leading from Wal-Mart to the arena. There is a high rock cut on the west side around a foot or less from the sidewalk. This looks as if it has never been scaled.
There are large chunks of rock that would scare any miner.
All that the city has done is put signs up to “watch for rocks.” I wonder what city hall wizard signed for and approved this hazard.
A 10-pound piece loosened by frost could kill.
In a mining situation, the rock would be scaled thoroughly, then bolted and then screened, which is basically the law.
I have also noticed that since July the city has installed yet more traffic lights at the intersection of Kelly Lake Road and Copper Street — when will this nonsense end?
It seems that civic officials just do what they like and the public are either ignored or treated with contempt. When someone gets killed or injured as a result of the municipality failing to consider safety concerns, who do we sue?
Lionel Rudd
Greater Sudbury
