Thanks to CBC Windsor for getting the data on traffic deaths of vulnerable persons, highlighting the issue of dangerous streets in Windsor. Read the article here. Sadly, this news is not new. The City has been aware of the data for decades and, despite oft repeated claims otherwise, and frequent media stories, no real changes have been made.
As far back as 2014 Windsor Police Services identified the following dangerous intersections on Tecumseh Road:
Tecumseh Road East and Howard Avenue
Tecumseh Road East/West and Ouellette Avenue
Tecumseh Road East and Forest Glade Drive
Bike Windsor Essex has advocated for improved safety on Tecumseh Road for more than a decade, ramping up our advocacy following the publication of a 2017 report on the City’s most dangerous intersections. At that time the City hired a consulting firm to determine solutions and to provide a report to guide the City’s efforts to increase road safety.
We attended the public consultations. The report was written. No notable changes have been made six years later and deaths on our streets continue.
Dive into our 2017 response here thanks to the Windsor Star, and ICYMI, check out this summer’s story published following Mayor Drew Dilkens’ accusations that grassroots advocates were weaponizing against the City.
Local Injury Law Firm, Greg Monforton, blogged about Windsor’s dangerous roads and intersections according to data published by the CAA and Windsor Police here.
The City did address its dangerous streets, including Tecumseh Road, in its 2019 Active Transportation Master Plan. Almost none of the recommendations from that plan have been implemented.
In 2018, the City considered adopting a Vision Zero policy. The policy is still under review although the City reconfirmed its commitment to road safety with a number of recommendations in 2022. However, when you look at the recent findings by CBC – 20 fatal Windsor crashes involving pedestrians and cyclists, one really must wonder just how serious the City is about the safety of vulnerable road users.
We live in a city that continues to plan streets as though it’s 1988, a time when engineers and city leaders prioritized people driving cars. It is time to stop studying and start doing. We need to prioritize people over cars. We want to see (where warranted); green paint and bike boxes, painted cross-rides, friendly signal phasing, refuge islands, and setback bicycle and pedestrian crossings. The world has moved on, and Bike Windsor Essex will continue to push and work with the City to make changes to our streets for those walking, cycling and in wheelchairs. The status quo is unacceptable.