Pellerin: Scrambling for safety — or how to make pedestrian crossings less dangerous
A young woman lost her life earlier this week after being struck by the driver of a pickup truck downtown, near the corner of Laurier Avenue and Elgin Street. Somerset Coun. Ariel Troster commented, on BlueSky, that we need to make our streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists by implementing Vision Zero.
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We should start with what are called 'pedestrian scrambles.'
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Vision Zero is a set of principles designed to make roads safer for everyone. One of those principles is using 'exclusive pedestrian intervals' at busy intersections.
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These are intersections where there is one light cycle during which all vehicular traffic stops, in all directions, and pedestrians get to cross in all directions, including diagonally. It works on regular four-way intersections or on more complex ones, too. The most famous scramble in the world is the Shibuya Crossing at Hachikō Square in Tokyo — and it's worth the google.
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Those were already on my mind this week because of a town in Alabama — no, not my beloved Huntsville, a smaller town called Auburn — that implemented a pedestrian scramble at an intersection known as 'Toomer's Corner' near Auburn University campus. When a little college town in Alabama is ahead of the capital city of a G7 country on basic road safety, you know you have an issue.
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I don't know the details of the events that led to the death of this young woman in Ottawa. I'm not suggesting a pedestrian scramble would necessarily have made a difference in her case. I'm speaking generally about the critical need to minimize conflicts between road users so that when mistakes happen, they're not deadly. That is the basic principle behind Vision Zero. We all make mistakes. People shouldn't die because of them.
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Some of the items in the Vision Zero toolbox require redesigns of roads but some don't. There are two very simple ideas we can do immediately to reduce conflicts significantly. One is to prevent right turns on red lights anywhere near people; the second is pedestrian scrambles.
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I grew up in Quebec City and pedestrian scrambles are very common there, especially in areas with lots of slightly confused bipeds, such as the parts of the city that are full of tourists. I am used to crossing diagonally. It makes a lot of sense to do that and often saves a bunch of time and it dramatically increases feelings of safety. The first time I took my kids to Old Quebec, we twirled and giggled as we crossed intersections diagonally just for fun.
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CBC
01-08-2025
- CBC
Recent collisions have councillor mulling ban on right turns at red lights
A recent string of vehicle collisions with pedestrians and cyclists, including a fatal incident in mid-July, has one Ottawa city councillor planning to ask the city to consider a ban on drivers turning right while facing a red light. Somerset Coun. Ariel Troster said Thursday she'll ask the city to mull options, including a city-wide ban and one just affecting the downtown core. Troster, who sits on the city's public works and infrastructure committee, said she witnessed the aftermath of a collision at the corner of Lisgar and Elgin streets on Wednesday that left a male cyclist "in agony." Paramedics said he suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to hospital in stable condition. Earlier on Wednesday, another cyclist was struck at Bank Street and Gladstone Avenue, sustained serious injuries, and was taken to hospital in serious but stable condition, according to paramedics. Police said both collisions involved cyclists who, according to witness accounts, were traveling in the wrong direction while vehicles were executing lawful right turns. Those incidents followed a more serious one on July 7, near a crosswalk at Elgin Street and Laurier Avenue W., in which a female pedestrian was hit by a truck and died. Troster said she's heard concerns about how banning right turns at red lights could negatively impact traffic flow but said the pros outweighed the cons. "Our neighbourhoods need to be safe, and if it means slowing down the flow of traffic, even just a little bit to make sure that that person can make it across the street, it's worth it," she told CBC. Local cycling advocacy group Bike Ottawa said it supported Troster's idea, adding that a more robust network of protected bike lanes in the city would help too. Beacon Hill-Cyrville Coun. Tim Tierney chairs the public works and infrastructure committee. He said he prefers a more targeted approach to improving pedestrian safety. Money from the city's speed cameras can help reconstruct intersections to make them safer, he said. While acknowledging that banning right turns at red lights would need to undergo professional evaluation by engineers, Tierney said such a measure struck him as potentially making things more dangerous. "Now [drivers will try] to turn at the same time all the pedestrians are crossing through the intersection, creating even greater conflict," he said. Total bans might also increase greenhouse gas emissions because vehicles are idling longer, Tierney added. Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said that if there are downtown intersections where it makes sense to eliminate right turns on reds, "then we will look at that." "Every intersection is different and there are different factors at play," he added. "We have to look at the evidence. I'm not sure that one solution applies to every intersection throughout downtown, but I'm willing to look at all the options."
Ottawa Citizen
31-07-2025
- Ottawa Citizen
Red-light right turns: Ottawa councillor wants to ban them downtown
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Ariel Troster is calling for changes after 'yet another' cyclist was struck by a vehicle near City Hall on July 30. Somerset Coun. Ariel Troster pushes her bicycle across an intersection in Ottawa's downtown core on Thursday while at least one vehicle waits behind her to make a right-hand turn on a green light. Photo by Jean Levac / Postmedia Somerset Coun. Ariel Troster is renewing her call for a 'Vision Zero' policy that would ban right turns on red lights in Ottawa's downtown core after she witnessed the aftermath of a frightening collision between a car and a cyclist on Wednesday afternoon. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles from Elizabeth Payne, David Pugliese, Andrew Duffy, Bruce Deachman and others. Plus, food reviews and event listings in the weekly newsletter, Ottawa, Out of Office. Unlimited online access to Ottawa Citizen and 15 news sites with one account. Ottawa Citizen ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles from Elizabeth Payne, David Pugliese, Andrew Duffy, Bruce Deachman and others. Plus, food reviews and event listings in the weekly newsletter, Ottawa, Out of Office. Unlimited online access to Ottawa Citizen and 15 news sites with one account. Ottawa Citizen ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors The cyclist was struck by a vehicle at the intersection of Elgin and Lisgar streets at 3:50 p.m. on July 30 — steps away from City Hall — and was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. A second cyclist was seriously injured in a separate collision on Bank Street near Gladstone Avenue earlier the same day. 'It was pretty traumatic. I came out of City Hall on my bike and right where I was about to cross the intersection at Elgin and Lisgar I saw the immediate aftermath of this man splayed out on the road, obviously in a lot of pain,' Troster said. The Ottawa Citizen's best journalism, delivered directly to your inbox by 7 p.m. on weekdays. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again 'It was really devastating, especially considering a woman was killed (on July 8) crossing the street at Elgin and Laurier.' Saloni Aitawadekar, 27, was killed when she was struck by a pickup truck while walking across the busy downtown intersection, three blocks from Wednesday's crash site. Troster spoke at a vigil for the Algonquin College graduate at City Hall on July 12 and called on the city to implement a 'Vision Zero' strategy to eliminate all traffic fatalities. The city's current commitment calls for a 20 per cent reduction in traffic fatalities each year. 'Every act of road violence is a policy failure, but, with proper road design and proper regulation and policy, an accident or a mistake doesn't have to become fatal,' Troster said in an interview Thursday. The intersection where Aitawadekar was killed was the site of another fatal crash in 2018. The stretch of Laurier Avenue West — along City Hall, the Ottawa courthouse and Confederation Park — is set for a long-awaited redesign that was delayed by jurisdictional issues with federal and provincial governments, which both own land impacted by the modifications. Construction was delayed by a year, Troster said, and is now slated for this summer and fall. Plans call for protected pedestrian crossings and a segregated cycling lane on a 'raised boulevard' along Laurier Avenue's north side from Elgin Street to Queen Elizabeth Driveway. Troster posted on social media following Wednesday's crash and received a 'flood' of support from residents and fellow councillors. 'Every time I post about a near-miss or an accident, I get flooded with people saying, 'It happened to me or almost happened to me,'' Troster said. 'All of this was right beside City Hall and right beside Lisgar High School, and enough is enough. This advertisement has not loaded yet. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'I think it's time that we really take a look at this change, especially in the downtown core and even as a pilot project at the intersections that have the highest rates of (pedestrians and cyclists),' Troster said. Somerset Coun. Ariel Troster says, 'Every time I post about a near-miss or an accident, I get flooded with people saying, 'It happened to me or almost happened to me.'' Photo by Jean Levac / Postmedia Troster plans to introduce a direction to city staff to examine a pilot project for the downtown core and other areas of the city with high rates of pedestrian and cyclist injuries or fatalities. 'It's every light and every corner and every time a car almost turns into you — it's really scary and it's just time to consider something a little bit radical to save people from getting hurt … It shouldn't take another fatality to motivate change,' she said. 'I think we're all just shocked, frankly, because it's a lot of road violence all at once,' Troster said, citing other recent incidents in Stittsville and another fatal collision on Mitch Owens Drive. Stittsville Coun. Glen Gower called for bike safety changes earlier in July when a young boy was struck by a car at an intersection on July 17 and a woman in her 30s was left in critical condition after she was struck on July 25. Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said he hadn't yet spoken to Troster, but was open to hearing her proposal and to consulting with the city's transportation department about the implications. 'I've been alarmed by the number of incidents that have occurred involving pedestrians and cyclists this summer,' Sutcliffe told the Ottawa Citizen. 'We need to do everything we can to make sure that everyone is safe, no matter how they're traveling through our city.' Knoxdale-Merivale Coun. Sean Devine voiced support for Troster's initiative, citing the right-turn ban in Montreal that remained in place after Quebec changed its laws in April 2003 to allow vehicles to turn right on red lights. 'Other cities elected to allow right turns on red to allow for greater traffic flow. And look who's paying the price,' Devine said in a Bluesky social-media post. 'Day after day, another tragedy. Make this an election issue.' Right turns are already banned at many major intersections in Centretown, 'but I think it's actually more complicated when the rules are different from intersection to intersection,' Troster said. 'There's always a conversation that, if you ban right turns on a red, then people will be more aggressive trying to turn on the green when people are crossing. So there's a lot we need to look at, but, if there's a measure we know will have an immediate impact, I think it's worth the inconvenience of a few more seconds for a driver.' With files from Sadeen Mohsen
CBC
31-07-2025
- CBC
Recent collisions has councillor mulling ban on right turns at red lights
A recent string of vehicle collisions with pedestrians and cyclists, including a fatal incident in mid-July, has one Ottawa city councillor planning to ask the city to consider a ban on drivers turning right while facing a red light. Somerset Coun. Ariel Troster said Thursday she'll ask the city to mull options, including a city-wide ban and one just affecting the downtown core. Troster, who sits on the city's public works and infrastructure committee, said she witnessed the aftermath of a collision at the corner of Lisgar and Elgin streets on Wednesday that left a male cyclist "in agony." Paramedics said he suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to hospital in stable condition. Earlier on Wednesday, another cyclist was struck at Bank Street and Gladstone Avenue, sustained serious injuries, and was taken to hospital in serious but stable condition, according to paramedics. Both collisions involved cyclists who, according to witness accounts, were traveling in the wrong direction while vehicles were executing lawful right turns. Those incidents followed a more serious one on July 7, near a crosswalk at Elgin Street and Laurier Avenue W., in which a female pedestrian was hit by a truck and died. Troster said she's heard concerns about how banning right turns at red lights could negatively impact traffic flow but said the pros outweighed the cons. "Our neighbourhoods need to be safe, and if it means slowing down the flow of traffic, even just a little bit to make sure that that person can make it across the street, it's worth it," she told CBC. Local cycling advocacy group Bike Ottawa said it supported Troster's idea, adding that a more robust network of protected bike lanes in the city would help too. Beacon Hill-Cyrville Coun. Tim Tierney chairs the public works and infrastructure committee. He said he prefers a more targeted approach to improving pedestrian safety. Money from the city's speed cameras can help reconstruct intersections to make them safer, he said. While acknowledging that banning right turns at red lights would need to undergo professional evaluation by engineers, Tierney said such a measure struck him as potentially making things more dangerous. "Now [drivers will try] to turn at the same time all the pedestrians are crossing through the intersection, creating even greater conflict," he said.
