It’s one of the busiest corridors in the city, but Winnipeg transit drivers said that’s not what makes Graham Avenue such a challenge to navigate.
The Graham Avenue Mall, which stretches nine blocks through Downtown Winnipeg, sees 1,800 buses and 100,000 transit users every day.
But drivers say pedestrians running across the street to catch buses, beat the light, or just to get where they’re going a few seconds faster has turned Graham Avenue into a chaotic roadway.
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“You watch how many people shoot across,” Tim Bahry said Tuesday, pointing at the Graham and Fort intersection.
Bahry has been driving buses for 17 years, and he said Graham Avenue between Main Street and the Hudson’s Bay store on Vaughan Street may be the trickiest part of his workday.
“You have to keep your eyes open,” Bahry said.”There are people running out to catch buses on your blind side.
“It’s very dangerous.”
But transit drivers aren’t the only ones that noticed the extra traffic.
Most pedestrians stopped by Global News Tuesday said they’re guilty of running across the street or swerving on foot through buses.
A major part of the issue is caused by parallel bus stops located between Fort and Garry Streets. Commuters getting off buses on the north side of the road frequently run across to buses on the south side — or vice versa.
Winnipeg has no jaywalking bylaw. Under the Manitoba Highway Traffic Act, “leaving the curb when not safe” only carries a fine of 113 dollars.
But with no plans to add more barricades, blocks, or to close off Graham Avenue to foot traffic like it is to cars, pedestrians and drivers can expect to see a lot of added stress in the near future.
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