Dear Editor
Old Man Winter has certainly arrived, and we as residents of the Battlefords should be thankful that we have dedicated city and town employees and their managers. When the snow hits the ground, making travel treacherous, the workers are quick to respond. Having streets that are safe to travel certainly is a bonus, especially when we read of the haphazard approach of a certain city southeast of here.
Unfortunately, the safe streets only extend to the highway, and then the story changes somewhat. Some months ago, after hearing complaints from Battleford residents regarding the bottleneck access from 35th Street onto Highway 4, we were told that signage would be changed. This change supposedly would advise northbound traffic to merge left well before approaching 35th Street, and therefore make access not only more efficient but safer as well. That was months ago, and nothing has changed.
In the lovely long days of summer, a driver on 35th Street could actually see back down the highway, and stop for the inevitable speeding vehicle in the merge lane. While somewhat safer, this certainly bogged down the intersection every time the lights at 29th Street went green. With the onset of the short days of winter, gone is the easy visibility, and trying to see which lane which set of approaching lights is in becomes much harder, and therefore exacerbates the congestion and the possibility of collisions.
Time to get signs made? Does it take two or three months to make a sign? It seems that in their zeal to balance the provincial budget, cutbacks to manpower and program spending take precedence over the safety of the motoring public. The situation at 35th Street is just one example. The rail on the overpass from Highway 16 has not been replaced either, as with the warning signs, which were conspicuous by their scarcity in the first place. But then again, there have only been a dozen or two horrific accidents there, can't ever happen again, right?
Lyle E. Comstock
Battleford
