Email from Matthew Asplin - Re: Helmcken Road Changes

From: Matthew Asplin
Sent: July-02-14 10:08 PM
To: Mayor And Council Email; info@viha.ca
Subject: Reply to Letter Regarding Helmcken Road Changes (Dated June 13, 2014)

Dear Honourable Mayor Hill and Members of Council,

The response that was provided to me by the Director of Engineering for the Town of View Royal, dated June 13th, 2014, was clearly inadequate, as it did not address or acknowledge my primary concern regarding emergency vehicle access, and questioning the logic of increasing traffic congestion on major routes that directly service Victoria General Hospital. As this matter appears to be driven by a philosophically driven, this is a council-level concern that should be directly addressed by members of council. The Director of Engineering was careful to clearly note in the response letter that the decision follows the town philosophy of "pedestrian and cyclist safety first, and commuter traffic last."

I would kindly ask if the Vancouver Island Health Authority and/or Victoria Regional General hospital, and local Paramedic services were consulted on the issue of road congestion along Helmcken and Wilkinson Roads. The act of purposely increasing traffic congestion right next to a tertiary care hospital is madness. The seconds lost while congested traffic struggles to make room for an ambulance could mean the difference between life and death. The laboring woman being frantically driven to the hospital by her husband, perhaps thinking an ambulance not necessary, would be stuck in a traffic jam while her infant's head is crowning. The husband is panicked, thinking, what if there is a complication?

All of this, done to satisfy the rigid, black and white thinking of the View Royal council when matters like this must be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. You are keen to assert the philosophy that road capacity and traffic congestion must be the lowest priority. Pedestrian and cyclist safety is a noble cause, but also a convenient excuse, forgetting perhaps, that increased congestion may actually put both of these groups at increased risk. One is lost in utopian delusion to believe that one or two modes of transportation fit the complex needs of a diverse demographic consisting of tradespeople, professionals, families, and disabled persons for whom active transportation may never be a viable option. With my background in climate change research, I value a green city as much as anyone and advocate responsible urban planning as one necessary strategy, among the many required, to reduce greenhouse gas emission by decreasing reliance on automobiles, but "not in my backyard" planning and pretending to be an island that need not worry about the concerns of the other 12 municipalities in the region will not lead us there.

I recognize that reducing ones reliance on the automobile is key to addressing the challenge of climate change, however, If real progress in reducing climate change is to be made, the wide range of the requirements our diverse working population need to be acknowledged and green, viable solutions need to be created to facilitate those needs. Obstinately putting one's head in the sand and hoping commuter traffic congestion will go away with a little traffic calming is simply impractical. If View Royal really wants to work towards improved safety and a greener city, they should not be participating in increased high density development without the necessary transit infrastructure to support it. They should instead be working together with other municipalities in the region to create regional solutions such as encouraging increased business development to allow people to live closer to their places of work, developing green transportation networks such as light rail, and reducing car idling times when stuck in traffic. I do acknowledge the development by Omicron will go a long way to address this, but I also point out that the nature of the retail and healthcare offices to be provided at this site will be heavily car oriented, which itself, is not a green development.

On this note, I would strongly recommend that the residents who are complaining about speeding along the 'raceway' that Helmcken Road is should strongly consider requesting a local air quality monitoring program so they may be informed on the concentrations of sulfurous and nitrous oxides that they are inhaling on a regular basis.

I would much prefer that we could mutually focus our efforts on lobbying the Provincial Government to invest in rapid transit in our region, and complete the much-needed McKenzine Interchange, which I shall duly point out would vastly improve pedestrian and cyclist safety on the Galloping goose trail, and help alleviate much of the issue of commuter traffic on roads that are not presently designated or operated as regional commuter routes, despite being required to do so.

I do appreciate you taking the time to read and respond to my original concerns, and thank you kindly for your further consideration on this matter.

Matthew G. Asplin, PhD

cc Victoria General Hospital cc Vancouver Island Health Authority