To the editor:
Re: Something Needs To Be Done About the Traffic, letter to the editor June 12 Capital News.
In his June 12 letter, Duane Tempel wrote that enforcing reduced speeds, and blocking car access to several downtown streets, would help address Kelowna’s high traffic density.
This is nonsense. It’s obvious that blocking some streets will increase density on those that are not blocked.
Likewise, reducing traffic speeds actually increases traffic density. This results in the same number of cars taking longer to reach their destination, and hence are on the road longer, increasing density further.
Temple also complained of motorists starting off when a pedestrian is only “halfway” across a crosswalk. In fact, the BC Motor Vehicle Act clearly states in section 179, subsection 1, that (and I paraphrase) a motorist is only required to stop for a pedestrian when the pedestrian is in the motorist’s half of a crosswalk. Waiting until a pedestrian gets all the way to the opposite curb is pointless, not legally required, and just needlessly backs up traffic.
I agree that traffic congestion in Kelowna can be problematic at times, but poorly thought out “solutions” aren’t going to help.
Robert Wilson,
Kelowna
