Three Calgary councillors have asked for a report looking at the safety of LRT crossings after a number of fatal CTrain-pedestrian collisions in the city.
On Oct. 15 a six-year-old was struck by an LRT train near the Somerset-Bridlewood station and later died in hospital. An elderly woman was killed on the LRT tracks near Whitehorn back in May.
Councillors Dianne Colley-Urquhart, Shane Keating and Ray Jones have all sponsored the notice of motion that will be brought to council Nov.19.
If the motion passes, the report would look at the 65 level crossings across the city with the aim of improving existing crossings as well as the ones along the proposed Green Line.
The best practices from other cities will be taken into consideration, including any new advances in safety technologies.
Keating said he wants to see what other transit operators across Canada are doing to improve pedestrian safety.
“Have we done enough to make sure that we’re being as safe as possible?” Keating said. “We can’t control all incidents and sometimes they will happen but what can we do to lessen the impact.”
If the council approves the deep-dive into CTrain safety, the report would be completed in early 2019.
Keating said the findings of the report could be used to make changes to the existing crossing across the city or possibly alter the designs of new level crossings.
The upcoming LRT Green Line will nearly double the length of Calgary’s rail system, adding dozens of new intersections where CTrains and pedestrians will cross paths.
Keating said additional lighting, physical barriers and added signage are all possibilities that could be used to reduce collisions.
“If we could find different ways of doing things… I would hope that would stop some of the residences from going across while unaware.”
If the study moves forward, it should be completed by early 2019.