ION - Waterloo Region's Light Rail Transit

[danbrotherston]

I am absolutely aware of those issues, it does not change the fact that this is an anti-pedestrian idiotic policy that has resulted in money being spent to make the city worse, and that people who were actually dedicated to making this as good as it can be would have pushed for a better less expensive, less stupid situation.

This adds 100 meters to anyone walking to any of those stores, for no legitimate reason whatsowever, those properties are open to the public, there is no restricted property being protected, as there would be in a residential setting, this is the type of thing that fiscal conservatives and urban activists alike should be pissed off about. Such an idiotic waste...

Yes, not the biggest issue, but few things are so clearly stupid as this.

The walkway is not intended for people just accessing the immediate bushiness on both sides, it is for all public.  Businesses need to take measures to mitigate risk in their parking lots for insurance purposes.  If someone slips and falls on the businesses property because they were walking across the parking lot solely for the purpose to access the track crossing, the business can be sued and found at fault if they are deemed to have not taken appropriate measures.  I am sure part of the negotiations with the land owner and region was to place measures that would keep pedestrians off the businesses property. It is a small inconvenience for a few people who might want to access the businesses verses all the other people utilizing the crossing to access all of Fairway Road businesses.  That being said, at least they did something for the pedestrians in the neighbourhood ....

You're missing the point, I don't care WHY we have chosen to make our world shittier for pedestrians, I care THAT we have made our world shittier for pedestrians.  This has just been one continuous quagmire, this whole area is intentionally designed to be unpleasant for pedestrians, we aren't making it better or doing something good, by building this in this way, we're merely returning to the previous broken status quo.

I'm not saying I would prefer no crossing---that is clearly worse, I'm saying that the whole situation is intolerable and we are continuing to keep the intolerable situation by doing things like this.

I wonder how many "urbanists" who do have cars, truly understand how oppressive and unpleasant that area of the city is for pedestrians. It isn't something you experience, unless you make an effort to do so, and those who do have cars, would probably, rightly choose to drive to those businesses. I have walked to them before, many areas of the city are designed exclusively around the car, and are difficult and time consuming to navigate without a car. This area is another level, it is unpleasant and oppressive feeling as a pedestrian, few other places in the city have felt dangerous in the same way.