Dear editor,
I was very encouraged to read of the approval by Courtenay council to spend $25,000 for surveying and other initial costs for a sidewalk on Lake Trail Road. There are two schools on this busy street and I regularly see young students and families walking or biking along a narrow hard shoulder on this busy road. These are among our most vulnerable citizens and our community surely has a responsibility to do everything possible to ensure their safety.
When young students themselves recognize the issue and work hard to gather data and prepare a presentation to the decision-makers, it is important that they learn even at their ages they have a voice and will be heard and their concerns taken seriously.
It is worth noting that Comox brought work on Robb Road forward by two years due to the safety concerns around École Robb Road. There will always be projects clamouring to be done in any community but in my opinion, projects that relate to safety — especially of children, the elderly and the disabled — demand a higher priority.
The students from Arden Elementary School requested a sidewalk and a bike path to access their school safely. I am optimistic that both modes of transportation will be accommodated in the surveying and planning so that students will have travel options.
Margaret Harris,
Courtenay
