Road safety improvements installed outside of Lord Byng Secondary
Posted September 1, 2024 4:37 pm.
Last Updated September 9, 2024 11:41 am.
Road safety improvements have been installed outside of Vancouver’s Lord Byng Secondary School ahead of the new school year.
Lucy Maloney with the district parent advisory council says the traffic calming infrastructure was introduced in response to a teenager being critically injured after being hit by a car in January.
“I came down here before the modifications were put in place at pickup time, and saw students hesitating and not knowing whether they could cross or not and relying on drivers to stop or not stop,” she said.
“And sometimes there would be miscommunications, and students would step out and then step back. It was really difficult to watch.”
1130 NewsRadio spoke to a parent that says he was surprised to see how fast traffic was going past the school prior to the improvements.
“It’s nice to see something that helps drivers be aware that this is a 40 kilometre zone,” he said.
“I’m happy to see it. I hope we can see more of it. This doesn’t have to be a one-off thing. I’d like to see systemic prioritization of pedestrian safety over the convenience of cars.”
The median has now been closed to traffic, so you can’t turn in either direction on Wallace Street.
The city has also installed concrete barriers to reduce the crossing distance for pedestrians.
The City of Vancouver says staff will continue to monitor the intersections to make sure they’re working as intended.
