Saanich is right in lowering speeds
Re: “Saanich eyes 40 km/h speed limit for residential roads,” Feb. 5.
In New Zealand, residential streets and school zone speed limits are 40 km/h. Saanich council’s direction is bang on.
Changing road dividers in affected zones is an easy-to-adjust-to reminder. Observation supports the view that expectations of conformance when introducing large change is unrealistic.
Going from 50 km/h to 30 km/h is a good example. I have not noticed great change in Victoria except somewhat aggressive behaviour toward drivers wanting to obey 30 km/h.
There is expertise to help make these decisions.
Bob Blackie
North Saanich
Photo radar best way to catch speeders
Lowering the speed limit is not the answer to safety.
Most drivers obey the speed limit and drive in a safe and respectful manner. The few reckless speeders won’t be deterred by lower speed limits and lower overall limits could even increase the accidents caused by those few impatient drivers.
Why don’t we use up-to-date technology to catch speeders? Police standing on the roadside using radar guns and chasing speeders with cars is obsolete expensive and ineffective.
Bring back photo radar and leave the limits alone.
Bruce Pendergast|
Victoria
Speed-limit reduction won’t improve safety
I see that Saanich has jumped in with the leader of unnecessary laws — Victoria — with a plan to reduce the speed limit on residential streets to 40 km/h.
I fail to see the rationale for spending thousands of dollars to accommodate people who spend their time texting while walking and fail to look up to check traffic. People have to accept some degree of responsibility for their own behaviour, including drivers who speed and don’t use hands-free devices. A 40 km/h speed limit won’t change bad driving and is an exercise in over reach.
Chris Sheldon
Saanich
Shake, rattle and roll along Saanich roads
When you consider the condition of the roads in Saanich, it will take more than reducing the speed limit to 40 km/h to improve safety in residential neighbourhoods or doing a safety review of Prospect Lake Road.
To maintain 570 kilometres of roads, Saanich taxpayers spend only $2 million on pavement renewal and $1.86 million for pavement maintenance and other efforts to extend the life of the pavement. Some roads are also improved in conjunction with upgrades to underground utilities.
About 30% of the 192 kilometres of major and collector roads are considered to be in poor (19%) or very poor (11%) condition, according to Saanich.
As for the remaining 378 kilometres of local or neighbourhood roads, amazingly there’s no condition assessment due to cost and the priority in dealing with the backlog of existing major and collector roads that need attention.
Considering the cost of labour and materials, that’s not a lot of tax dollars to look after 570 kilometres of critical infrastructure. Quality roads are considered a core service and a primary responsibility of council and municipalities. It’s simply false economy for taxpayers if roads are neglected.
To see if more money needs to be devoted to roads, Saanich will carry out a pavement condition assessment this year — excluding sidewalks — to help in 2021 budget discussions. It’s overdue.
It takes one good jolt from a pothole to wreck your suspension, alignment and tires, or if you are a cyclist, to end up on your head.
Stan Bartlett
Chair
Grumpy Taxpayer$ of Greater Victoria
Impose taxes on travel to help combat viruses
When I stop and think about the problems being caused around the world by the coronavirus, I see two distinct, but nevertheless connected problems.
The first is the environment that allowed the virus to develop in the first place. It would appear that this virus was passed from live creatures to humans in a live market in China. If we want to prevent this kind of virus from being passed to humans in the future, the answer is simple: get rid of live markets.
The second problem is the unknown cost to humanity, loss of life, personal freedom and liberty to the people living in all nations affected by the virus. To date the coronavirus appears to be spread by unimpeded human travellers and potentially cheap goods and services that our global economy has come to value more than life itself.
If you want to see this trend reversed in Canada or at the very least paid for by those who benefit the most from globalization, government might want to start by building a reserve fund to combat such pandemics.
For example, collect a 5% tax on all international travel both to and from Canada in order to build a trust fund used exclusively to cover the high cost of combating viruses.
Other taxes might come from additional import duties imposed on goods coming from countries of virus origins, such as China.
While such a fund would not prevent the human tragedies associated with virus outbreaks, it would provide some of the necessary funding for medical research, immediate patient treatment and care, and other economic costs incurred by Canadians when an outbreak occurs.
Bruce Cline
Victoria
Grand Princess is coming to Victoria
CNN reports: “As officials around the country urged local communities to think about ways to stop the novel coronavirus from spreading, California authorities said Wednesday that a person who died from COVID-19 had recently been on a cruise.”
That would be the Grand Princess of Princess Cruise Lines, the first ship of the season to visit Victoria on April 3. What, me curious?
John Fry
Victoria
This reminds me of a scary TV show
I feel like I’m living in an episode of the X-Files.
Very scary.
S.M. Shuler
Victoria
We need explanation for pipeline appeal dismissal
How disheartening to read that the appeal process for the Trans Mountain pipeline has ground to a halt, at least in the courtrooms.
It begs the question: What kind of a world are we living in? Democracy? Dictatorship? In Canada, our Constitution says we are living in a democracy, or are we? Are we prepared to live in a world where the highest court in the land can dismiss a legitimate appeal without giving any explanation as to why it was dismissed?
Perhaps “they” think we “the people” are powerless. Are we?
Lia Fraser
Victoria
Wealthy must pay their fair share
Re: “It’s discrimination against the hard-working,” letter, Feb. 27.
The writer makes the argument that the top-earning people have jobs that carry more responsibility in serving others in the community.
Loui Eriksson of the Vancouver Canucks made $6 million last year. Has he served the community more than, say, a teacher or physician?
Let’s stop the pity party for the one per cent. Progressive taxation has been around for decades. Our society is becoming less equitable because the middle class and poor are being marginalized. It’s time for the wealthy to pay their fair share.
Sean Gimbel
Nanaimo
Don’t expect savings from ICBC overhaul
Re: “ICBC overhaul details head to legislature, Eby sells plan,” March 5.
Part of the provincial government’s sales pitch for the new ICBC scheme is the claim that drivers are going to save 20% on average. Multiple academic studies have shown that no-fault schemes cost drivers more in premiums than tort schemes like we currently have in B.C.
Additionally, the Insurance Bureau of Canada has also cast doubt about the long-term viability of the cost savings, suggesting that according to ICBC’s own service plan, their operating expense ratio is projected to increase under the new scheme.
The claim that this new scheme will save drivers money is just another promise that this government and ICBC will break.
Nick Coleman
Discovery Economic Consulting
Victoria
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