Q: Where do you stand on the vexed question of Pedestrian Overpasses?
A: I’m all for them! I believe we should have more of them. In fact, I’m strongly in favour of installing pedestrian overpasses anywhere Mother Ducks need to lead their children across busy roads to get to their swimming lessons.
I’ve looked at the comparative costs of placing crossing guards at all such locations adjacent to the Rideau Canal and the Rideau and Jock Rivers within the City limits and recoiled at the fiscal impact of instituting what amounts to a perpetual expenditure, the costs of which can only be expected to rise in future.
I’ve also looked into busing the kids to school. Again, this amounts to committing the City to a perpetual and perpetually growing expenditure – a luxury we can no longer afford in the current tight, and tightening, economy.
Pedestrian overpasses, by contrast, represent a one-time expenditure with minimal ongoing maintenance costs. Pedestrian overpasses just make sense.
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