Raise the Hammer

i have lived on main (at locke) for 11 years. i have witnessed this monstrosity called main street for a LONG TIME. we own the house, so i definitely have a vested interest in seeing changes such as the ones proposed in the article. i love the idea of cutting down lanes to accommodate cyclists and pedestrians. i love the idea of having 2-way, slower traffic. it would make SO MUCH SENSE. i'm more into the 2 lanes of traffic idea vs. one lane each way, as that seems most realistic. but there definitely has to be a traffic slowing measure, and 2-way traffic.

i HATE this steel river! i am an active cyclist; never got a driver's license. i get around by walking and cycling. but i don't cycle on main street, EVER. because it is a death trap for cyclists. i have seen many crazy collisions in front of my house over the years, due to speed and bad driving. many of those cars have slammed into the building that is now the yoga studio. i don't even like walking along main street because i don't trust the traffic, so i often take the side streets. if i am waiting to cross main to get to "crunch crunch convenience" (the irony is rife when you see how many accidents happen here) i stand behind the building that housed NINA's restaurant, away from the street because there is always the chance of being crushed by a car accident. i am faced with the threat of injury or death every time i want a chocolate bar! isn't that absurd?

there is parking in front of my house at all times except rush hour, and i have seen parked cars being smacked because of drivers going TOO FAST, not paying attention. a few months ago a minivan smashed into my next door neighbour's porch to avoid crashing into a parked car. luckily no one was injured or killed. when we are parked in front unloading our groceries, we are faced with the threat of injury or death. isn't that outrageous?

DRIVERS ARE GOING TOO FAST here. this cannot be an inner city highway any longer. something has to change.

if we are going to have businesses flourishing along the streets, there has to be a change to the traffic flow. please don't tell me that if i want to live on a sane street i have to move to the suburbs (suburbs=yuck to me). there has to be some creative, forward thinking in planning our city streets. there have to be compromises for the future good of this city. the rewards could be phenomenal. more shops and businesses would work on a slower, more pedestrian friendly street. maybe if we imported a bunch of montrealers to main street we could get some changes??? ha ha... no i'm serious. they know how to live (and protest) in montreal!

kudos to this article: to the VISION it presents, to the ideas proposed, to the excitement it has generated in me and others, and to getting a great dialogue going. i hope one day soon to see that mellow yellow line painted in front of my house.