A woman from Victoria Co. says proposed changes to a dangerous section of Hwy. 105 don’t go far enough, and might even make the area less safe.
Jennifer Anderson says she’s witnessed near misses every day and several collisions at the Irving-Tim Horton’s location in Baddeck.
She says roughly 70 people showed up for a public meeting on the issue in June.
Anderson tells The Hawk provincial transportation officials plan to add turn lanes at the site, but that won’t help unless the speed limit is lowered from the current 90 km/h.
“It costs very minimal dollars versus the incalculable cost of somebody dying there,” she says. “Speed reduction is the number one thing, and it’s easily implemented by the Minister of Transportation, should he choose to do so- he has the power to do so himself, and he’s aware of that.”
Anderson says Irving reps went ahead with the current layout without proper permitting, and they need to make changes to the site, or the turn lanes will only make the area more dangerous.
She says the diesel pumps for the larger trucks should be in the back of the business, not in the front with regular vehicles.
Irving reps did not respond to a request for comment.
Anderson says it’s only a matter of time before someone is hurt or killed in the area.
“I honestly believe that with the plan that TIR is doing on the taxpayer dollar, combined with really no change to the Irving site itself, you will see a fatality there,” she says. “When that happens, I believe it’s on them.”
Anderson says she’ll keep lobbying Lloyd Hines, the province’s transportation minister and the MLA for Guysborough-Eastern Shore-Tracadie, to reduce the speed limit in the area, and Irving Reps to change the layout of their site.
Photo credit: Jennifer Anderson/FB