From: Willy Schuurman

To: transportation@dnv.org

Sent: Friday, March 28, 2003 4:15 PM

Subject: Crosswalk request for analysis

I'm one of the Directors of the Seymour Valley Community Association. One of the local residents has requested an Abbey Road type marked crosswalk be painted near Berkeley and Sechelt at the top of the trail that links Blueridge with the north part of Seymour Valley  - see the attached photos. I brought this issue up at a Seymour Valley Community Association directors and they support the concept of improving safe access linking Seymour Valley/ Blueridge.

Some info on the use and history of the Seymour Valley/ Blueridge pathway

- The Seymour Valley is one of the Districts longest cul-de-sac - the only road access is via by Riverside Drive.

- No transit buses come up Riverside - the closest bus is the 210 Blueridge.

- The local catchment school elementary school is Maplewood Elementary, but since BlueRidge Elementary is closer as the crow fly's, many kids attend that school.

- Because the cost of housing is high, many residents choose to billet English language immersion students that are dependent on public transit to get to downtown language schools.

- Residents, through years of walking, created their own pathway to get access to the bus stop at Berkley. That pathway was on steep terrain and very dangerous especially in wet conditions.

- Several years ago, the District (I presume) installed a very nice set of stairs which makes the route more safe and increased usage.

- There have been requests by residents to light this pathway since it can not be used safely during darkness - usage is expected to increase in the future.

The major users are then people catching or returning from the bus and students walking to/from school. There are also no neighbour parks (with playing fields/equipment) in the Seymour Valley corridor so kids sometime hike the trail to access playgrounds. The request for the installation of a crosswalk came from a parent of child that attends Blueridge and finds that traffic is heavy in the morning and afternoon and that traffic does not yield for the child crossing.

I understand that information posted on your web site states that pedestrian accident rates can increase at marked crosswalks due to increase sense of pedestrian security, but it is still felt that drivers need a yield reminder and a crosswalk seems the right solution.

This is a request for the transportation department to access the area in question and make a recommendation with regards to pedestrian safety crossing Berkley at the head of the pathway.

Sinceley,

William Schuurman
1916 Rivergrove Place
North Vancouver, B.C. Canada
V7H 2L4
ph: 604-924-3704
mailto: schuurman@shaw.ca