Now there’s talk about pedestrian overpasses as a consequence of the Spencer Road Interchange. I am unaware of any talk of that up until now, not at any of the open houses nor in any of the documents I could find at Langford’s Spencer Road Interchange hub.
The original plan had the following to say about the Spencer Road Interchange regarding pedestrians and cyclists:
“Spencer Road Interchange will:
- Serve areas north and south of Highway 1 equally – projected traffic split is 50% north & 50% south
- Help to relieve Veterans Memorial Parkway congestion
- Provides a safer Highway 1 crossing for pedestrians and cyclists”
This announcement leaves us unclear about what the plan for cyclists is, especially with recent reductions in the anticipated cost of the interchange opening up questions as to whether the design is being scaled back.
I find it striking that City Hall has announced they’re looking into this now. Why was this not considered at an early stage since there is broad agreement in the community that pedestrian and cycling infrastructure is important? Or, if it was considered at an earlier stage, why are we only hearing about it now? It is frustrating that the plan keeps changing, now so long since the last public open house and so far after the public was invited to comment on the plan, much like the financing changed from the developers paying directly at the last open house to Langford taxpayers loaning them $9.75 million under the current plan.
One of the questions that comes to mind with the imminent construction of the interchange and subsequent closure of Spencer Road’s access to the highway is, what happens if the province doesn’t sign on for building the overpasses, or if construction is delayed well after the interchange’s completion? Do pedestrians (and cyclists?) lose out?
And will the developers be covering Langford’s share of these new pedestrian overpasses, since the building of them is necessitated by the closure of Spencer Road?
- Steven Hurdle -
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Langford seeks win [sic] overpasses
Bill Cleverley, Times Colonist
Published: Friday, April 11, 2008
Langford Mayor Stew Young would like to see at least two pedestrian overpasses over the Trans-Canada Highway to link north and south Langford. Read the rest of this entry »
